Cursed
by Yomico
Summary: Natsu's Dragon Slayer magic is out of control. Targeted for the destructive power that came along with his curse, he slips further and further away from humanity. Lucy rarely even whispers: her childhood has made sure of that. No one had hear her true voice in years. When they meet on a jailbreak mission, can they help each other return to the world? (NaLu)(E.N.D.-ish)
1. Chapter 1

**NATSU:**

I could always clearly remember each time I woke up. It was always the same, so not that hard to remember. The stone walls never changed, save the occasional splatter of my blood. The door was still the same dull gray. The chains used to be black, but after so many years they took on a shade of scarlet. At least, I think it was years. I have no idea how long I've been down here. I think I was supposed to be standing, but more often I just sagged in the chains until my arms would numb over, and then I'd be able to sleep. He'd come in later with more questions, questions about my messed up Dragon Slayer magic that I couldn't answer. My guild probably thinks I'm dead. A half-hearted smile forms on my face as I picture them bawling their eyes out if front of an empty grave.

I pick up the sound of steps on the landing. My smile vanishes as I resign myself to another eternity of pain. The door to my cave-like cell slowly creaks open, the person behind it uncertain. That pokes at my interest, giving me an incentive to raise my head. Small fingers slid around the edge and with a quiet protest the door swung open. I raise my eyes enough to look her over, and I need to say that she was the most unlikely person to work in a dungeon for dragons.

Big chocolate eyes stared from a pale face. Her blonde hair fell slightly past her shoulders. She was no princess, that's for sure: her clothes were plain and I picked up the scent of soap and dirt. No perfume, no scents of cleansers or shampoos. She was probably a maid. My brain screeched to a complete stop. This was making no sense. Why was she down here? Then she stepped to the side and my personal tormentor stuffed his incredibly wide body into the door. I sagged in the restraints again. The girl was either meant to throw me off guard or she was here to help him. Neither was good.

"Rise and shine, my Dragon Slayer." I felt my lips curl into a snarl at his words. I wasn't a belonging, but he didn't seem to think so. "I'd like you to meet my new helper, Lucy. She won't babble about our secret, so I think she'd be perfect for the job. Her magic is quite interesting as well. Tell me if you like it." He closed the door with a grunt and pulled his chair out to the center of the room. It was a big cushy thing that looked ridiculously uncomfortable. I think it was supposed to make me jealous. Well, that failed epically. Once he squeezed his fat ass into the chair he nodded at the girl and she bowed to him. Yep, definitely a maid. What was her name again? Luigi? She walked up to me and placed a small hand on my forehead. The coldness of her touch shocked me. My vision began to black out and within moments I was somewhere else. A field of bodies stretched out around me while smoke hid the sky. Terrifying roars shook the air as dragons landed around me, dozens of them. One of them picked up a limp body from the ground and I could see scarlet hair caked into a bloody mess, hiding her face. I knew who it was.

No way. Erza wouldn't die. She was invincible. She was a scary monster. She was my friend, my family. I yelled a challenge to the dragons as I attacked them, my body covered in flames. They roared flames, but I ate them up and kept on fighting. They were endless. I was nearing the end of my magic power when a huge shadow covered the ground. Glancing up, I could make out a blue and black shadow circling the carnage. Its roar shook the ground. My eyes widened in terror. Acnologia. The black dragon began to gather its breath for a roar and at that moment my magic seemed to just shut off. As the pale blue light descended onto the bloodbath I closed my eyes and waited to blow up. Instead I jerked awake back in my cell, coughing. Her cold hand was gone and she was back in her corner, her head slightly inclined to the fatass. The fatass himself grinned at me.

"How did you like it, huh? Seeing your friends die by your hand… mmm, must have been pleasant." I just stared at him. What? He looked at me and shook his head. "You are much too dense. She will help me soften you up a bit, and then we can play again!" He laughed and I closed my eyes. He always left after his threats. A stinging pain shot through my side and my eyes shot open to see him holding a whip. He laughed maniacally and he swung the whip, cutting open my skin each time. It hurt like hell but I refused to give him a response. An ice-cold sensation made its way up my side where the first hit had landed and after a moment I realized it was poison. He probably thought I could burn it out. Maybe. For a second I though the girl flinched, but I shook it away as an illusion. She was on his side. Why would she feel anything towards me? She was going to help him. When the fatass was satisfied with the blood dripping down my body he left with his usual, "See you later!" This time, though, before shutting the door he glanced at the maid.

"Lucy, keep working on him. Make him nice and tender." He sneered. She bowed and he left, locking the door behind him. Luigi ran up to the door and peeked out through the barred window on top, as if she was checking to make sure that he was gone. Then she pulled out a gold key and pointed it at the wall.

"Open Gate of the Maiden: Virgo." She whispered. With a blinding flash of light that had me closing my eyes a maid with purple hair popped up out of nowhere. She had broken chains on her wrists. How sadistic was this girl?  
"Yes, princess?" The maid turned to the girl. I frowned: princess?

"Please break the chains and bring my kit from the Celestial Spirit World." Luigi whispered. Why was she whispering while the maid was talking normally? Wait. Break the chains? Whose side was this girl on?

Virgo nodded and disappeared. When she popped up again she was holding a small black bag, which she gave to the girl. Then they both moved towards me and I made an attempt at raising my head. I was tired. The maid hit a chain holding my arm and it exploded, broken in half. My arm dropped, my muscles having no energy to even move it. The girl pulled my arms across her shoulders and the maid broke the second chain. I slumped to the ground while the girl lowered me gently and the maid took care of the chains on my feet. Last thing I saw was the girl's guild mark on her right hand, a reminder of a happier time.

"Fairy… Tail…"


	2. Chapter 2

**LUCY:**

Erza had told me it'd be bad, but I did not expect this. Sure, dark red scales covered the left side of his body, curving black horns grew from a head of messy pink hair, and one of his eyes was black, but I could see the broken boy underneath. The way he looked at me when I came into the cell, that faint hope in his eye that I had managed to revive, even if was for only a second, and the way it was crushed when the Duke had come in. True monsters lacked that little shine in their eyes that should always be present in a human.

But I could also see that he was slipping. Honestly, anyone would in his condition. If what I had seen on my first trip had been going on for the month that he'd been in there… I didn't want to think about it. Anyone else would have died. His entire body was covered in cuts and gashes that refused to close; probably tinted with poison. Most of them had become infected, like his Dragon Slayer body was crumbling under the onslaught of foreign invaders. His right leg seemed to be completely disconnected from his nerves. When Virgo and I cleaned out the infection with Porlyusica's goo he would twitch and occasionally growl, but not on the right leg. The tainted whip the Duke had used today had cut deep and the fresh poison was steadily spreading. From what Virgo could tell, his body was done. It wasn't even trying to cure him anymore. Which meant we needed Wendy. Fast.

I had joined Fairy tail a little over a month ago, a few days after his disappearance. Happy, Natsu's blue cat, had been distraught when Natsu went missing. My job was supposedly simple: become a trusted mute maid, be admitted to the torture chamber because of my Real Nightmare ability, and break out an injured Dragon Slayer. No one had mentioned that the boy would barely be able to move. About the mute part; I talked, but only rarely and always in a whisper.

~FLASHBACK~

 _"_ _Lucy, you are a Heartfilia. Bring pride to your family. A lady must be seen but not heard. Voice your opinions only to your husband, for the rest of the world has no need for a lady's thoughts."_

~FLASHBACK END~

Involuntarily, I shuddered. Papa's voice was always reasoning, as if he was absolutely right. I believed him for too long, but shaking off the habit of silence was an uphill battle for me. Vertical mountain type battle. I helped Virgo move the boy to the tunnel Virgo had made for our escape. Right outside the cell door Levy had made a simple loose chuck of rock into a switch if twisted once the left and twice to the right. When I finished twisting the stone the rock slid soundlessly into the wall, revealing a dark and twisting passage. Virgo hauled the Dragon Slayer in and I made sure that we left no traces. Then I destroyed the switch and slid into the tunnel as the door shifted shut. Out only way was through the tunnel.

I thanked Virgo and turned to the unconscious boy. A small whimper escaped his mouth as red began to leak through the bandages. Slowly and carefully we redid the goo treatment and rewrapped the bandages, taking up over an hour. When we were done I sent Virgo back to the spirit world, her constant presence a constant drain for my magic. If we were found I wanted to be able to summon three gates at least, namely my most powerful ones. They sucked up magic worse than the new brand of magic cars. I let out a quiet sigh. The journey through the tunnel would take at least three days, and then another two to get back to the guild. Pulling out a communication lacrima I called the master.

"Lucy! What happened?" Makarov was surprised to hear from me so soon.

"I have Natsu, master. He's worse than we predicted. I don't think he'll be able to walk in the near future unless we get Wendy down here soon. He lost feeling in his right leg." I whispered softly. The master was one of the few people who I would speak to.

"I'll send her with Charla and Happy. You are in the tunnel?" A new note of urgency filled his voice. Natsu was his adopted child, after all.

"Yes. About his magic." I heard a breath sucked in on the other side. "The scales cover the left side of his body. I haven't checked to see is his guild mark is still there, but I will. Also, his left eye is pitch black, no white at all."

"The curse is beginning to take effect, then." Makarov had resignation in his tone. "He will slowly lose his body and then his mind. We are still searching for a possible solution."

"Ok. Please send Wendy soon." I whispered into the device. Once I heard his confirmation I clicked it off at turned back to the boy. He looked kind, even with the demonic touches. Gray and Erza had told me about what he used to be like: nice, funny, really dense, and a constant goofball. Maybe I would get a chance to see that side of him too.

 **NATSU:**

Every single inch of me hurt. I floated in a sea of black, any movement on my part causing sheer agony. Something felt wrong with me, with my magic. I wanted to wake up, to find the surface, but I didn't know why. Going back meant more pain, more questions. I could just stay here. Something started to touch me, gently and carefully, and the pain slowly died down. It was still there, but not nearly as encompassing.

Voices floated through the sea. Some small part of me recognized them, but no names came to mind. They were discussing something. Was it me? The darkness stopped moving and I realized I had come back. A new scent hit my nose: soap and dirt. Moving hurt, but I thought I recognized the smell. That girl. Luigi, was it? One of my eyes slowly crawled open. There she was, her blonde hair up in a ponytail, some strands falling around her eyes. The warm brown eyes were focused on me, on my half-open eye. The ghost of a very small smile touched her lips, as if she was happy to see me awake. I though no one had cared if the monster was up, only if he was moving. I liked those big brown eyes: they we comforting.

"Hey, Natsu." She whispered. Why was she whispering? Why was I on the ground? A memory jumped to the front of my mind, her supporting me as the purple-haired maid broke the chains. Was I finally out of that cell? "How do you feel?"

"Hu…hur…hurts." I managed to force out. My voice scared me. It was completely dry and defeated. Then again, I had screamed a lot in the beginning of the torture. Then I slowly got used to it, I guess. It hurt to talk.

"It's okay. Don't try to talk too much. Wendy is coming, she'll help you feel better." Even her whisper was soft and soothing. But who cared about the monster? Why was she trying to help me?

"Wen…dy?" It hurt so much. She shook her head gently, the ghost of a smile coming back.

"Don't talk, Natsu. I know you're a tough guy, but what happened to you would have killed anyone else. Let me be the tough guy for a few days, okay?" Her whisper was laughing, just a little bit. Not teasing, but kind. I liked it. I managed the tiniest nod and she noticed. I though I saw a real smile touch her lips. "Yes, Wendy's coming. Happy will come with her, so you can see him again. He's really worried, you know. Do want water?"

Happy. The little blue cat, my best friend and partner. I missed him too. I missed everyone from the guild. Maybe even Gray, just a little bit. A small shake of no was enough to answer her last question.

"Okay. Get some rest, Natsu. We still have to wait for Wendy for some time. Try to sleep. I'll stay right here, I promise." She whispered. I closed my eye, more than willing to sleep. I could feel her presence next to me, not running from my appearance. She didn't seem frightened, but more… understanding. It was a strange feeling, when someone understood. At least, I hoped she did.


	3. Chapter 3

**LUCY:**

He was a fighter, all right. Despite the pain he'd tried to talk, but I could see the confusion and distraught in his eyes when he heard his own voice. I was shocked too, the amount of exhaustion and defeat sunken into it, but I tried to hide that from him. He seemed to doubt himself, his appearance, and I wanted him to know that I wasn't scared. He needed someone to build up from, a firm ground. Maybe I could give that to him.

He'd fallen asleep. When blood seeped through the bandages I cleaned the source and rewrapped it, careful to not wake him. At one point he tensed up, the pain clearly showing on his sleeping face, and as I watched him I felt something brush my arm. Looking down I saw his hand touching mine and at the contact he seemed to relax. A small smile touched my lips. It had been a long time since I had really smiled, much less shown my teeth to anyone. A lady never smiled with her teeth showing, only a small smile to show her pleasure. When she laughed she made sure to cover her mouth with a delicate hand. It was a habit burned into my head and very hard to erase. When he fell asleep I realized that I had actually talked to him, a complete stranger, even though it was a whisper. He felt safe, trustworthy. I knew that I could talk to him and he would listen. It made me happy, talking to him.

From the start I had noticed that only his good eye opened. The left one seemed to be disconnected, not even flickering. Shifting my position but careful not to move my hand I considered the possibilities. The eye, since it was affected by the curse, could be acting separately. Maybe if he opened it first his normal one would stay shut. However, when I had first seen him, both of his eyes were open. Maybe the eye was disconnected but not reliant on the other one. I shook my head softly, a few loose strands flicking in front of my eyes. There were too many different options to consider. I'd just have to see what happened when the cursed eye opened first.

 **NATSU:**

Turned out sleeping didn't mean resting. Instead I got a nightmare of being back in the chains, the fatass swinging his whip. It hurt like it was real. I saw the girl in the corner, and this time I clearly saw her flinch. I tried to reach out to her, but the chain stopped me. For a second I felt something warm touch my fingers and as I focused on the new feeling the nightmare slipped away. I could finally sleep.

When I woke up she was still there. The moment my eye opened the big brown eyes focused on my face, soft and caring. I really liked those eyes. Most people had stopped caring when I started to turn into a monster. Maybe she was different.

"How do you feel?" She was still whispering.

"Better." It hurt much less. The surprise on her face was clear as day. "I think my magic is coming back."

Then she smiled. It was small, but it was a real smile. She was happy for my magic coming back. It had been so long since someone was happy for that.

"That's good. With your magic you should heal faster. Those chains were really advanced magic drainers, I'm surprised it's coming back so soon." Her whisper was happy. I tried to move and slowly my arms responded, the pain slightly suppressed. "Do you want to try and sit up?" She asked. I nodded, pleased at how much easier it was. She moved to my side and carefully lifted my shoulders. It was like waking up and realizing that you have a body for the first time. With agonizing slowness my muscles began to work, finishing what the girl had started. Even though it hurt I was glad I was at least able to sit.

"How long have I been here?" I dreaded the answer but wanted to know anyways.

She looked me in the eye. "A little over a month. I joined the guild a few days after you disappeared. Did you spend the entire time in that room?" I nodded. No wonder it felt like I was disconnected from my body. I hadn't really moved for a whole month.

"Did they search?"

"They all did. When you didn't come back they all went out, Happy especially. It struck them hard when they couldn't find you." Her whisper was careful, wary. Looks like she was like everyone else. I felt her hand slip under my chin and firmly pull my face up until she could see my eye. "Natsu, I'm not scared of you. I don't hate for what you look like. It doesn't matter to me. I can see through the scales and horns. You only change who you are if you chose to. I just don't want to push you too hard. The faster you recover the faster we can get away from the Duke." Even though she was whispering I could see the truth in her eyes. She really did care.

"Why?" She looked at me, confused. "Why don't you run away? Everyone else did." Another small smile formed on her face. Her eyes held no pity, only understanding. I was glad for that.

"Because I used to be like that too. I was raised to be a lady, seen and not heard. I wore fancy dresses, makeup, jewels, accessories: I was essentially a dress-up doll. Normal people who saw me always assumed me to be a rich snob simply because of what I looked like. I would smile and they thought I was happy. I would giggle and they thought I liked them or their comment. Even my father thought me to be content because of what he saw day to day. On the inside I hated it, the lies, the fakeness of it all. Just because I looked like something didn't actually mean that's what I was. Our only difference is that I found a way out while you are still searching. I'm sure you'll find it soon." She understood. She really did. I felt my lips shift into a smile, something so forgotten that I wasn't sure I'd even see it again. She smiled too, and I glimpsed a flash of her teeth before she quickly hid it.

"Why do you whisper?"

"A lady must be seen but not heard. No one cared for my opinions, so I learned to never speak." Her smile grew again to show a sliver of teeth. "You're the first one to ask." We'd just met but I finally felt like I had found someone in the same boat. Maybe we could pull each other out. "My turn. Do you know anything about your curse?"

She was honest with me. It was only fair that I repaid her in the same way. Besides, I trusted her. "Nothing much, except that my black eye does whatever it wants. Sometimes it opens and sometimes it doesn't. I can't see out of it." She nodded slowly, considering.

"Has it ever opened first?"

"No." I sighed. My stomach rumbled. Her smile, which had vanished while we talked about my curse, came back with a teasing touch. She reached into a new bag, way bigger than the small black one, and pulled out a box. The smell of chicken reached my nose and my stomach growled louder. She pulled open the lid and handed me a fork.

"Spicy chicken. Mira said it was your favorite." I inhaled the chicken. It was absolutely delicious, but better than Mira's cooking. Smiling, she handed me two more boxes full with spicy chicken. It was my first real meal in more than a month. I looked up for more but she shook her head, her smile growing wider. I frowned at her, making her let out a small giggle. I noticed her hand instinctively reaching up to cover her mouth but she caught herself and pushed it down. Old habits, I guess.

"Who made the chicken?" I asked, curious.

"Oh, I did. Figured I'd learn a new recipe." I stared at her, my mouth hanging slightly open. "Did you like it?" I nodded slowly. Another giggle escaped her. "At this rate you'll be able to move in a few hours. Try sleeping again. It's a good three-day walk from here to the end of the tunnel, and then another two days to get to the guild. If we take a carriage it could be closer to one." I vigorously shook my head no. Transportation did not mix with me.

"Motion sickness." I mumbled. Something closer to a real laugh jumped out. I grinned and stretched out on the floor, wincing slightly. She put the boxes away and leaned against the wall. I didn't think I'd be able to sleep after the food but the moment I lay down tiredness engulfed me.

"Thanks, Luigi." I yawned. She frowned.

"It's Lucy." Her whisper was stern but laughing.

"Sorry, Lucy." I was asleep faster than I'd ever been before. This time, no nightmares stalked me in my sleep.

 **LUCY:**

I had almost laughed. I barely remembered laughing, and yet he had made me drop my guard for a moment. He was making me open up in ways I didn't think were possible. Even Levy couldn't make me do more than giggle.

Still, forgetting my name like that! Luigi? Seriously? I wanted to smack him but restrained myself. It wouldn't help him get better. He looked so innocent when he was sleeping. When he was talking to me there was a small piece of him worried that I would run away from his monster. 'Never, Natsu. I will never run away.'

He was healing way faster than I'd initially expected. His leg still worried me, but he had managed to sit up and swallow three full chickens. If that wasn't improvement, I didn't know what was. Mira had told me all about his motion sickness and Gajeel had shown me exactly what it looked like. I think he blushed a bit when he admitted his weakness.

Maybe when he woke up next time we could start to move. If anything, I could always call Virgo to help, although I doubted the tough guy would appreciate being carried like a sack of potatoes. My eyes began to close, my head leaning comfortably against the stone. It was surprisingly warm to the touch. I missed my bed and my apartment, but after two weeks as a maid my standards had dropped considerably. Slowly but surely my brain shifted into sleep mode, my eyes closing and giving way to the darkness.


	4. Chapter 4

**NATSU:**

I wondered if anyone had ever told Lucy that she was beautiful. I woke up first and saw her sleeping, leaning against the wall. Even with her eyes closed her face seemed warm and inviting. She radiated kindness. But if you looked close enough you could see the pain of her past engraved on her features and how hard she tried to hide it. She was strong, even though she didn't look the part. I sat up quickly, pleased at how much my strength had improved. Slowly I tucked my legs under me, testing their stability as I slowly straightened. My right leg seemed kinda off. I could feel it, but anything I did seemed to happen a couple seconds after I tried to do it. Eh. Probably nothing Wendy couldn't fix. I slowly unwrapped the bandages on my hands, revealing rapidly healing cuts and gashes. A couple bruises were on the point of fading. I noticed that my scales had moved further down my arm. Surprisingly, my guild mark was a big hole in an otherwise mostly encased arm, like the scales were repelled somehow. I was certain that it was covered before. Shrugging off the confusion I sniffed out more chicken and poked my hand into the big bag. Pulling out two boxes of delicious chicken, I was about to begin my breakfast when a small hand sternly tapped my shoulder.

"Natsu. Leave some food for later." Lucy's menacing whisper made me turn around to see a pair a large brown eyes glaring jokingly at my face. I grumbled about it, but eventually let her take away a box. She put it back and pulled out a small container with something that smelled like dumplings. I scooted over to see if I could snag one, but she shook her head and moved the dumplings away.

"Hey!"

"Natsu! You have your chicken and I have my dumplings. Go eat. We'll start to move right after." Man, she was bossy. She didn't even need to use her actual voice; her whisper alone reminded me of a certain scary scarlet-haired demon. I wolfed down the delicious chicken, which only made me hungrier. With a small smile she pulled the empty box out of my hands and stuffed it into the bag. Then she took out a golden key and pointed it at the wall.

"Open Gate of the Maiden: Virgo." A bell sounded and the purple-haired maid popped out.

"Punishment time, princess?" Virgo placed a chained hand across her heart.

Lucy sighed. "No, no punishment. Please take the bags back to the spirit word."

"Yes, princess." Grabbing the bags, Virgo vanished in a flash of golden light.

"Why does she call you princess?" I asked.

"I have no idea. I guess she wants to." Lucy whispered in answer. She began walking towards the unseen other end of the tunnel and with a few weird first steps I followed. My leg still felt really weird.

"How's your leg?" Lucy whispered over her shoulder.

"Funny. It feels off." It also made me limp. She nodded and kept walking.

 **LUCY:**

He could walk on that leg, but I could see that it was lagging a bit. Here's to hoping Wendy could fix it.

We kept walking for what felt like forever. Eventually we reached one of the camps I'd asked Virgo to set up, complete with sleeping bags and some snacks. Natsu's beastly appetite was famous. While he ate I scratched a sign on the wall to mark us being there. If we got ambushed and captured, Mira has asked that I mark the camps so that they knew where we last were. It didn't really make sense to me, but I did it anyways. As I was finishing the sound of running footsteps reached my ears. Natsu's new tenseness told me he heard it too.

"Lucy!" Wendy's voice. I felt a small smile tug at my lips. I liked the little Dragon Slayer; she was the first person from the guild that I had talked to. Whispered.

"Lushi! Natsu!" Happy. That damn cat smushed up my name every damn time. Still, I heard tears in his voice and knew that he'd seen Natsu. I hadn't even finished turning around when a blue blur shot by me and collided with the pink-haired boy sitting on the ground. On the tunnel floor a few dark spots bore witness to the cat's tears. "Natsu! I missed you so much…" Happy snuggled in Natsu's neck while the boy stroked him. They looked cute together. Wendy ran up to us, panting slightly and carrying a white exceed in a pink dress. Charla.

"He-cat! Can't you see Natsu's hurt? You could at least be more careful!" Charla scolded.

"It's fine." Natsu waved the concern away. I frowned slightly at now much his tone had changed. Before it was open and cheerful, but now that his guildmates had found us he seemed to close up. Noticing my concerned look he gave me a tight smile, shaking his head.

"Are you ok?" Wendy spoke at my shoulder. Looking down at the blue-haired girl I nodded towards Natsu.

"I'm fine. Can you check his right leg?" She quickly nodded and came over to the boy, who at her request slowly stretched out his leg. The movement almost seemed… reluctant. What was up with Natsu?

 _"_ _Why don't you run away? Everyone else did."_ Oh, Natsu. He didn't trust them because he thought they saw him as the monster he appeared to be. I hoped it wasn't worse with the rest of the guild. I had done a lot of background reading of Dragon Slayer curses, and the closest reference I could find had mentioned the influence of other people on the curse's spread. I had figured that it meant how people reacted toward you. If the cursed person was rejected in a way that hurt they would give in to the curse until it consumed them. A turquoise light indicated the presence of Wendy's healing magic.

"Did you get him out ok?" Panther Lily's gruff voice had me spinning around.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered to him. Master hadn't mentioned him at all.

"Gajeel told me to go with them so we could fly you guys back. It would be faster." The black exceed inclined his head towards Natsu. I nodded in agreement, keeping my words to a minimum. The guild had stopped trying to get me to talk after the second week, realizing I needed time to open up to people. So far I had five I could whisper to normally: Makarov, Mirajane, Wendy, Levy, and now Natsu. Natsu was probably my first choice. I felt at easy around him, and he really was an easy person to talk to. Wendy finished with Natsu's leg and he tested it. Seeming satisfied he nodded to the girl and stood up. Wendy blinked in surprise at his cold reaction and took a couple of steps back. Walking over to the girl I gently placed my hand on her shoulder.

"It isn't your fault. Give him some time." I whispered to her. She nodded and wiped away a stray tear.

"Happy, grab Natsu and Charla take Wendy. I'll carry Lucy." Panther Lily commanded. He spread out his wings and took hold of my shirt. Happy and Charla did the same to their respective Dragon Slayers. The exceeds took off and whisked us through the tunnel.


	5. Chapter 5

**LUCY:**

We landed gently in front of the guild doors. I had no idea the exceeds could fly so fast. Thanks to them we had made it to the guild in a little over a day. Apparently we were a bit off the sleep schedule because of the tunnel; when we exited the passage it was early morning, meaning we'd flown the length of the tunnel through the previous evening and night. By noon we could see the guild.

Natsu stared uncertainly at the doors. I came up to him and place my hand on his shoulder.  
"What's wrong?" I whispered to him.

"What if they run away again?" His voice shook just a bit. I felt sorry for the boy. It must've been worse for him than it was for me.

"You don't have to go in. Just let them see you so they know you're back and than you can go to your house. I can bring more chicken." I added with a small smile. He looked up at me and his lips twitched upward a bit while his right eye showed me the extent of his reluctance to show himself to the guild. I nodded towards to door and with a small sigh he pushed it open. The silence was deafening. People were frozen in place, staring at the cursed Dragon Slayer covered in bandages. I spotted Mira at the bar with Lisanna and Cana. The master was probably in his office, wherever that was. Erza looked to be beating up Gray and Elfman. Then Natsu turned around and without a word headed to what I presumed to be his house, Happy in tow.

"We're back." I whispered. It carried through the silence and I was sure everyone had heard it. Wendy and the two remaining cats walked past me into the guild as I turned to follow Natsu.

"Wait! Lu—" I shut the door behind my back and took off running. I didn't want to answer their questions. I didn't want to talk to them. Even though I felt bad for ditching Wendy I knew my habits would choke me in there. She would handle it better than both Natsu and me.

 **NATSU:**

I hadn't wanted to see the shocked and frightened faces of my family, but Lucy had made sense. She caught up to us at the edge of Magnolia. She'd been running. I remembered her habits and realized that the first thing the rowdy crowd would have done was tried to interrogate her. With her reluctance to speak and her whispering she would have had a hell of a time. No wonder she'd run. She didn't try to start a conversation with me as I led the way to my house. When we got there I pushed the door open to reveal a decently clean room. Happy must've done some tidying in my absence. I plopped down on the couch while Lucy summoned Virgo and asked the spirit to bring the food bag. Once the thing appeared in my room she kindly dismissed the maid and set out five more boxes of the spicy chicken as well as three boxes of dumplings. Walking over to our fridge she pulled out some raw fish, probably for Happy, and set it next to the boxes.

"I need to go home for now, but I'm leaving Virgo here so she can knock some sense in any unwanted visitors. If you feel like letting someone in, just tell her." I was about to protest when she cut me off with a firm whisper. "No. You need to heal and beating up the ice princess won't help that. If you need me, I live on Strawberry Street. Follow my scent from there." She came over to me and lifted my chin so she could meet my eyes. "Promise me you'll take it easy, okay?" I nodded. Satisfied, she let go of my chin and moved to the door. Turning around she zeroed in on Happy and pointed a finger at him. "You, cat, had better make sure that Natsu follows my order. Got it?" She raised an eyebrow at him.

Happy looked up from his fish. "Aye sir!" I had to grin at that. She gave me a small smile and left, closing the door gently behind her. I did what I wanted to and tore into the delicious chicken.

 **LUCY:**

I really hoped Natsu would at least take it easy. I knew from Mira that keeping him away from Gray wasn't something necessarily in my power, but maybe, just maybe, Gray would have some sense and not cross Virgo. Sure, keeping her there was a serious drain on my magic, but I needed to know that Natsu was okay. He seemed to be closing up more ever since he showed himself to the guild. The spirit could give me an update from time to time. Getting to my apartment I headed straight for the bath. It had been two long weeks since I had taken a decent wash of any kind. It would also give me time to think.

The warm water was soothing and I felt myself truly relaxing for the first time in days. I needed to summon Crux and ask him about Natsu's curse. I also needed to update my letters to mama. Then there was rent; I had no idea if I would be getting paid for my undercover mission. My plants were probably wilting, what with me being gone for two weeks and all. Laundry was up there too, and so was storing my winter clothes. Summer was right around the corner and they were still taking up half my closet. I pinched my nose and exhaled slowly. Rushing myself wouldn't do any good; I would just start to forget things. I dove underwater for a few seconds before surfacing and pulling myself out of the bath. Quickly wrapping my hair up in a towel and putting on a set of decent clothes, I pulled out a silver key and summoned Crux.

"What can you tell me about Natsu's curse?" I asked the cross-shaped spirit. He seemed to doze off for a few minutes, but I new that he was searching his information. With a loud noise between a yell and a sneeze his eyes shot open and in an aged voice he spoke.

"Lucy-sama, the curse on your friend is unique. It is said to occur when extremely negative emotions force the Dragon Slayer magic to advance at an accelerated rate, giving the wielder an extreme boost in power. However, once the initial effect wears off the wielder with experience difficulty controlling negative emotions such as anger or sadness. A few days later a physical transformation will occur, most commonly starting with scales appearing on the body. As the curse spreads it will engulf more of the body, slowly giving it more dragon-like attributes. For example, instead of a hand the wielder would have a dragon arm." I nodded to show I was following. "Eventually the curse will finish taking over the body and then it makes its way into the mind of the wielder, causing them to abandon all of their humanity. Any negative emotion will be converted to rage, giving the wielder an increase in power."

This was sounding really great. "How about a cure?"

"A pleasant emotion that is consistent would keep the affected grounded, slowing or even stopping the spread of the curse. To fully remove the curse one would have to wait until it fully spreads and then find a way to instill an extremely positive emotion in the affected, strong enough to break the hold of the dragon's anger. If the affected is willing and has the strength they can purge the curse from their body."

Just great. "Thank you for your help, Crux." The spirit nodded and vanished in a small poof of smoke. A sigh escaped me. Even though I had the cause, effect, and solution all racing around in my head it all seemed impossible. To get rid of the damn curse Natsu would have to be fully eaten by it and then someone would have to find a way to break through the rage and make Natsu want to come back. I blew at the strands of hair in my eyes. They lifted gently before flopping back into place. With another sigh I picked myself up and took care of the plants and laundry. I stared at my winter clothes, half-hoping that they would magically pick themselves up and fold into the box. No such luck. With a small groan I forced my feet to move and attacked the huge collection of warm clothing. My thoughts kept flashing back to Natsu.

He made me feel safe and understood. I could talk to him. I had almost laughed when he mumbled about his motion sickness. I really hoped he was taking it easy. I flashed back to an early memory I had of my mom, the two of us playing by the pond in the estate garden.

 _"_ _Mama!"_

 _"_ _Yes, Lucy?"  
"What does love feel like?"_

 _She giggled, covering her mouth like a proper lady. "It's when you feel safe and understood. The one you love makes up your missing half and makes you feel whole, and when your loved one is missing you would go to the end of the world to find them. They would do the same for you." She smiled at me, a small, lady-like smile._

 _"_ _I think I love you, mama!"_

 _"_ _I_ know _I love you, Lucy."_

I sighed. I missed her deeply, and writing letters to her made me feel like she was still listening even though I knew she was dead. Safe and understood, huh?

I shook away the thoughts. There was no way I could develop such affectionate feelings for Natsu so quickly. Absolutely no way. Another sweater landed in the box. A couple hundred left and I could move on to the pants.

Suddenly I felt the small tug on my power than identified as Virgo vanish. Sitting back on my heels I pulled out her key and tried to summon her, but her key glowed softy and wouldn't open. Someone had injured Virgo enough to force her gate closed. Jumping to my feet, I grabbed the nearest jacket and pushed out the front door. I doubted anyone in the guild would force my spirits back while a dreaded feeling in my gut sent adrenalin through my legs. Unless I was overreacting, Natsu was expecting a rather violent visitor.


	6. Chapter 6

**NATSU:**

Lucy's chicken was absolute heaven. She was giving Mira a run for her money. The boxed were empty in mere minutes and I moved on to the dumplings. While I test-tasted the first one Happy finished eating his fish and flew over to me, watching me sniff the fat yellow dumpling.

"Are you ok, Natsu?" He landed on the table and looked up at me, his gaze worried.

"Yep." I managed around the dumpling. In reality I was far from okay. Sure, showing myself to the guild would give them a reason to stop searching, but I doubted anyone in that room really wanted me back. Seeing their shocked faces brought back the crushing truth: few could see past the monster. Even Lisanna's eyes held fear and suspicion. At one point I thought we had something between us, but that illusion broke real quick. The first week with the curse she had avoided me all together, like I was carrying a disease. It hurt. I knew Erza, Gray, Gajeel, and Wendy weren't as disturbed by my changing appearance but compared to Lucy they were just as bad as the rest of the guild. Something inside me sparked and a burning rage pushed its way into my head. I squashed it down, determined to not let the stupid curse win over.

Happy started filling me in on what happened during the month I went missing, starting from Lucy joining the guild. I was barely listening, my thoughts completely on the blonde girl. Sure, I nodded once in while when he paused, but I didn't really care what happened while I was gone. Lucy's image filled my head, her big brown eyes sparkling with hidden laughter. I really wanted to hear her laugh.  
"Say, Happy, who found out where I was?" I interrupted his story about Kinana and some weird mushroom. He looked a bit put off but gave me a quick answer.

"It was Lucy! She said some weird stuff about maps and location spells and then she used my memory, but it worked." His tail flicked as he paused for a quick second. "She's the one who volunteered to go get you. I think she said something about her being new and unknown and the rest being celebrities. She said it would be easier for her to fit in because she didn't talk anyways and she knew how to be a lady. I didn't know that maids had to be ladies too…" He kept talking about maids and ladies. I took a moment to process what he'd told me. Lucy chose to go and save a complete stranger who was cursed even though it meant she would have to go back to the past she looked to be trying to escape. I blew out through my lips and dragged a hand through my messy salmon-colored hair. Happy looked up at me.  
"What?"

"Nothing, just—" A scream followed by an explosion broke me off. Crashing through the door I saw the last of the golden dust that used to be Virgo be blown away. A hooded figure stood by the far tree line, a ball of black magic hovering above his hand. He flung it at my face and I dove to the side, the attack missing me by mere inches. Behind me our house took the hit, a corner exploding as the magic connected. I heard the figure smirk before a strange heat started to creep up my legs. Glancing down told me there was nothing there. In the second I took to check the figure moved for another hit, this one in close quarters. I felt flames encase my hand.  
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" My hand collided with his stomach and he flew back before hitting a tree and sagging to the ground.

"My, my, my, what magic power we have. Shame you can't control it, eh, Dragneel?" The figure spoke without a daze. Dammit. He jumped to his feet and we began to circle, him starting the movement and me following. "But that works for us, because it means you can't help your friends." A blast echoed through the air, carrying with it the screams of many people. I snarled at him and darted in for an attack but he vanished with a slight ripple. I froze, snarling. He didn't reappear. His words bugging me, I called Happy over and we ran to the guild. I knew those voices very well, for they belonged to my family.

 **LUCY:**

I had no idea my street could be this packed. I found myself shoving people aside as I ran to the guild. After all, I had no idea how to get to Natsu's place without passing by the guild like we did the first time. I rounded the final corner in time to see the entire building explode, black smoke weaving and punching holes in the few walls that remained standing. People were screaming. Most were running. Pulling out my keys I took off towards the guild, hoping that Natsu could take care of himself.

"Open Gate of the Lion: Loke." I whispered, my voice rough from running. The orange-haired man appeared in a flash of golden light, running to match my pace. His formal suit moved with him, no signs of restraint or discomfort showing.

"I'll go help. Be careful, Lucy." He told me, a slight growl present in his voice. I nodded once and he sped up, leaving me behind. I was already picking out the second key. Definitely not Aquarius. I was pretty sure she said she was on a date with Scorpio and that was one deadly package I did not want to touch. Taurus was a pervert, but I would call him in I needed muscles for backup. Aries could help me if there were any injured, so I pulled out her key. Besides, she and Loke worked well together.

"Open Gate of the Ram: Aries." I small explosion of pink wool and she was there, running beside me. "Stay with me." I whispered. She nodded and we sped up slightly, our only goal being to reach the destroyed guild. To my surprise we were intercepted by a boy with spiky pink hair right outside the main gate. Natsu.

"What are you doing here, Luce?" He was snarling. I paused to catch my breath before giving him a calm answer.

"I knew Virgo had her gate forced closed, so I went to see what happened. Then the guild blew up." I tried to make my voice reasonable, like Papa always sounded. If what Crux said was true, agitation would only make things worse.

"But it's dangerous." He didn't want me to be there because it was dangerous. Go figure.

"So is everywhere else, Natsu. I'll be fine." I reached up and tapped his nose. It twitched slightly, almost making me giggle. Almost. "Go defend your family." He didn't want to leave, that much was obvious, but he went. Our relationship was strange and slightly messed up. I grabbed Aries' hand and pulled her towards the guild, following the Dragon Slayer. The inside was chaos. On one side stood the members of the guild, slightly battered and thoroughly shocked. On the other side was a small group of cloaked mages practically bleeding power into the air. Their hoods were up and on the cloaks a single symbol blazed, the white standing out against the black of the cloak. Grimoire Heart.

Seconds before the front mage unleashed the spell I felt it coming.

"Aries, cover the wall behind the Fairy Tail members. Side switch." I whispered. Aries nodded, her eyes already focused. The Grimoire Heart mage sent a shockwave of magic through the air, causing the unprepared to fly back.  
"Wool wall!" Aries' voice bleated slightly as she summoned a wall of pink wool. The good guys crashed into its softness and it quickly enveloped them, hiding them completely from the enemy. It was one of the tactics Aries had developed with Loke, one that enabled our side to breathe and regroup. Rushing behind the wall I nearly collided into Wakaba as he dropped to the floor. Loke slid by me as he headed out to capture the attackers' attention. Most of the members followed, led by Erza. A collective war cry rang through the destroyed guild hall. Running the length of the wall I pulled out the few stragglers and checked for major injuries. Luckily, the worst I found were too small to be a major threat. Turned out that most of those who didn't rush out were slightly dazed from the initial shockwave and rushed to join their guildmates on the battleground the moment they could piece themselves together. Within minutes Wendy and I were the last ones left. Aries' wall faded and I could clearly see a pink-haired idiot attacking the mage who had sent out the shockwave. A smile played on my lips. So much for telling him to take it easy. Someone from Grimoire Heart opened a portal to allow a mass of foot soldiers stream into the guild hall, swamping the outnumbered Fairy Tail mages. Charla took Wendy to the more heated parts of the battle while I pulled out fleuve d'etoiles and went to pick off some maggots. I was quite a relaxing experience. After a quick check with me Aries dove into the mass of bodies to find Loke. They were a good team and I was pretty sure they also happened to be an item. I smacked a couple more screaming idiots into silence with my whip. Strangely, I was reminded of tossing my winter sweaters into the box. Then confusion descended. Literally.

Some where in the crowd Levy screamed, "Everybody down!" as a vile green ball of magic burst in the hands of a cloaked mage. Barely anyone followed her directions. The green spread through the room and when it hit me my brain went into overdrive. Faces swam in my eyes, shifting and changing until I couldn't tell friend from foe. I shut my eyes and grabbed my hair, a splitting headache raging through my head. A scream rang in my ears and it took me a moment before I realized it was mine. I never screamed. It wasn't lady-like. Memories from my upbringing joined the onslaught, telling me that a lady should gasp, not scream. A lady shouldn't be heard. A lady should be protected. She shouldn't have to scream. I was sinking and running out of air. More memories. Mama and Papa kissing. Mama, pale and dead. Tears streaked down my cheeks. Papa scolding me and my little sister, Michelle, staring at me with her button eyes from a chair. Rolling hills of the Heartfilia estate. Fairy Tail. I didn't know where I was or who I was. How old was I? I didn't know. It was too much, too confusing. Warm hands grabbed my shoulders. Only Natsu's hands were that warm…  
"LUCY!" My eyes shot open to stare at his, one completely black and the other a beautiful onyx. Worry battled with anger in his good eye. My headache subsided and I found myself again, pulling out of the confusion. He brought me back. My legs crumbled under me, unwilling to support me any longer. He caught me in a warm hug and I leaned on him, grateful for the support. Then I noticed his scales. Glistening red was creeping onto his shoulder, the bandages torn. His right shoulder.

"Luce, you ok?" His tone was worried.

"Natsu, your scales." I whispered. He glanced at them for a second before turning back to me.  
"It's fine. What happened?" He asked. My brain, still slightly fried, began to work furiously. He wasn't affected. Looking around I could see that everyone else was, with the exception of Erza. Then again, she had that eye of hers. Her break had been short lived because the moment the cloaked mages saw her standing and sane they bombarded her from all sides. Why wasn't Natsu affected? Was he also immune? If not, why did they spare him? A passage from a spell book came to me.

"It's a very powerful spell, Confusion Bringer. It brings up memories and jumbles them all together in a person's head. If they stay like that for too long they could go insane or lose their memories." I nodded at the Fairy Tail mages on the floor, eyes shut and hand pulling at their hair. From the jumbled mess Mira rose, her Demon Halphas form in its full glory. With a snarl of rage she flew at the Grimoire Heart mages, throwing deadly magic as she went. The memories I saw were old, some even partially forgotten. "The caster is extremely powerful. Be careful."

Natsu was about to give me a retort when a spell hit him in the back. His back arched slightly under the force. My legs pushed against the floor to support us both as he fell on me. The scales slithered down his right arm at a record speed. I risked a glance to see who hit him. One mage had his arm extended in our direction. The shockwave chap. For a second a spell illuminated his face and under the hood I saw… nothing. Just a swirling black void. I was pretty sure Grimoire Heart didn't have a faceless member, unless their rambling master had an experiment-gone-wrong on his record. Who were these people? A small increase in pressure on my shoulder told me Natsu was up. Pushing off he stood in front of me, like he was protecting me from the faceless mage. A part of me agreed completely with his actions while the other got lost between being touched and being annoyed.

"Looks like we found the treasure, Dragon Slayer." Faceless laughed. What treasure? The cloaked mage did a quick maneuver with his hand and a portal opened by Natsu's head. A thick black collar shot out, shutting firmly around his neck. For a second he froze before silently crumpling to the floor. The scales stopped going down his arm. Somewhere Loke shouted Aries' name and I felt their gates forcibly shut. It took a monster-sized bite out of my magic. I doubled over, my chest heaving as I tried to recover from the spirits. Another wave of Confusion Bringer hit me and I welcomed the floor face first, already lost in my own memories.


	7. Chapter 7

**NATSU:  
** I didn't want to open my eyes. The place reminded me of the Duke's dungeon and I had a stupid hope that if I never opened my eyes it would turn out to be a dream. At least this time I wasn't chained, with the exception of the ice cold collar. When they made the thing they probably had Gray in mind – it refused to warm up. It also bit into my skin and made it impossible to tilt my head. If anything, my jailer thought of me as his pet. The dragon's rage sparked up and I struggled to squash it back down, sweat forming on my face. It was getting harder each time, but when Lucy was with me the rage didn't come up. Lucy, with her big brown eyes and silky blonde hair, incredibly strong under a soft image. A smile tugged my lips as I pictured her concerned face, someone who could see past the monster. Even if she didn't know it, she helped me fight the curse. She pulled me out each time I got lost. She was there when I blacked out; hopefully she was safe. The guild would protect her from the Grimoire Heart bastards.

Heavy footsteps echoes through the room. "Rise and shine, my Dragon Slayer." The same greeting. My teeth clenched together. My right eye opened a fraction to take in the fat man leering at me from behind thick black bars. Two guards stood behind him, one holding a small remote. Quick surveillance took in three torches and a dark staircase in the right corner. The cage had three sides, the last one being part of the rock wall. My eye slid shut.

"I brought your treasure, my pet." He leered. The echo of protesting feet came down the stairs first, followed by sounds of muffled protests and only then the actual people. I inhaled the scent of dirt and soap with a thin covering of strawberry along with the metallic stench of blood. My eye jumped open. Two more guard held a frozen Lucy as she stared at me, her eyes alive with fear. A thick chunk of fabric covered her mouth. Her hands were chained in front with magic draining cuffs. The familiar rage rose without restraints as I took in her bruises and the dried blood crusted on her cheek. The bastards let her go and she stumbled to the bars, her bound hand reaching up to support her as she fell towards the cage. I scrambled up and ran to meet her, reaching out to cover her small hand with mine.

"Luce?" I whispered, my eyes searching hers. The relief was obvious. The fat bastard sneered at us before nodding to the guard. They came up to take Lucy and I had to bite my tongue as the rage washed over me. It was pointless. My left eye opened slowly and immediately my vision changed to a black and white mess. I let go of the bars and fell back, my head spinning as I tried to sort out what I was seeing. The room was covered in a dull grey and the guards were a solid black. The Duke was the same, a featureless black blob. Lucy was a pure white shape, and if I tried I could make out the faint outlines of her face and clothes. The rage split the world into good, bad, and whatever. I stood and clenched the bars, snarls ripping from my throat. The black blobs moved and a painful surge of magic ran through my body, forcing both eyes closed. The left eye stayed closed and the world returned to normal. Lucy was struggling in the guards' hands, her eyes locked firmly on my face. There was worry in them, far more worry than fear. The fat bastard waved his hand at them and they left, pulling Lucy with them. I tried to cover my hand in flames but the same shock that turned off the eye had stripped me of magic power. Pulling the bars apart did nothing.

"So the Enhancer was right. She's the treasure. Well, my Dragon Slayer, if you want to see your treasure again you should consider telling me what you saw with that eye of yours." The Duke's slimy voice vibrated in my head. I kept my mouth shut. His patience evaporated like Gray's ice in my flames: real quick. "Kill her."

"NO!" The rage built up and exploded before I could blink. Flames rushed through the room, anything flammable catching fire. Clothes included, mind you. More guards came rushing in to douse their master with water, saving his fat ass.

"Interesting." The Duke examined me like a new toy. "Well, don't kill her yet. I want to break this one in slowly. Let him hear her scream." He flicked his fingers and my sensitive hearing picked up the sound of a knife being drawn, the noise echoing off the stone walls.

"Don't. Touch. Her." I snarled. He just grinned and clapped once. The scent of fresh blood floated in from the staircase, but nothing more than a pained gasp was heard. He didn't know that Lucy was a lady, and ladies didn't scream. Still, hearing her gasp in pain sent a knife through me, like the pain was my own. The Duke looked up the stairs, confused. I stumbled back until I hit the wall and slid down. The rage vanished and left me exhausted, my magic at zero. With my head between my knees I heard him sigh before going up the stairs. A loud slap rang out and the collar sent electricity through me, forcing me unconscious.

 **LUCY:**

The knife had hurt, but I refused to scream. That's what he wanted and I wouldn't give it to him. Being a lady had its benefits. When the Duke came up he was furious. His meaty hand landed a stinging slap on my face before he stormed down the hallway and up to his mansion. I got dumped in a small cell like last week's trash.

Something bad had happened when Natsu's left eye had opened. It was written on is face. I wanted to help him but I was no match for the two guards while I was so low on magic. I could barely stand. One thing I knew for certain: I was breaking Natsu out again, no matter what.

 **ERZA:  
** The battle left Fairy Tail on the floor, clutching their heads as their memories jumbled up until they could no longer tell reality from dreams. Mira was lost in a fit of rage and I was willing to bet that she had relived Lisanna's 'death'. The only two missing were Natsu and Lucy. We sent out search parties to the Duke's castle but he turned each request down. We couldn't hope to overpower him: his immense wealth would bribe even the fairest of judges. Master agreed with me in the fact that Lucy and Natsu were most likely in the Duke's hands.

When the attackers took out Natsu they vanished one by one, taking the two with them. I heard them say something about a treasure and each time I thought about what they could've meant I was taken back to the battle and Natsu's face when he heard Lucy scream. It was a terrifying mold of anger, worry, and panic. Lucy was very special to him, even though they had met only a few days ago. Out of everyone in the guild he'd gone to help her first, leaping over his writhing comrades.

"Erza-san, are you sure you're okay?" Wendy's voice brought me back from my thoughts. I met her worried gaze.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Are you thinking about Natsu-san?"

"Him and Lucy, yes."

"Erza!" Levy came running over, a fat book in her hands. Gajeel stomped up behind her, bickering about something with Lily. "I found something about the curse."

"What?" I spun to face her. We knew next to nothing about Natsu's curse and any new information was vital.

"It says here that the curse takes negative emotions and converts them to rage, acting as a fuel for scale growth. When the scales finish growing he'll lose the second eye and then his mind." She flipped to a marked page. "The only offered cure is temporary, but it says that he needs something to stabilize the anger. In other words, something comforting and pleasant."

"They called bunny-girl his treasure." Gajeel's rough voice cut in. "She's the stable thing or whatever. They'll use her to speed up the takeover process."

It was all making very grim sense.  
"And then they think they'll be able to control it… We need to find them. Now." I snapped. "Break into the Duke's castle, take it down, whatever, but we cannot let Natsu lose his mind." Whatever the Duke was planning was doomed to fail. Controlling pure rage was an impossible task, especially when that rage was embodied by a dragon. History gave few examples but each one resulted in the death of millions. I began to round up the guild. We would be violating some laws, yes, but it was worth it if we could save the lives of so many innocents. Besides, Fairy Tail was infamous for our ability to wreak havoc.


	8. Chapter 8

**LUCY:**

The guards came again in what seemed like a few minutes. They pulled me down to Natsu's cage, only this time he was unconscious. The Duke came down with a remote and with a jerk Natsu was awake, his eyes jumping from me to the guards to the Duke. The fat man kept asking Natsu to tell him what he saw with the cursed eye, but when the pink-haired boy glances at me I gave a miniscule shake of my head. He kept his mouth shut. Running out of patience he came up to me with another collar, slightly smaller than Natsu's. The metal was freezing and I could barely breathe with it on. Whenever Natsu refused to answer the Duke would shock me, the magic coursing through me in a wave of pain. Every time I told Natsu no, and every time he would look at me with pleading eyes. Each time I writhed on the floor his scales grew slightly and by the end of the session his arm was completely covered. When the guards pulled me away Natsu's good eye glazed over and he lost it completely. He started bashing into the bars of the cage and snarling. His scales began to crawl up his neck and each time he hit the bar there was a sickening crunch, as if the scales were breaking under the force of his attacks. When the Duke had enough he used the remote to shock Natsu into silence and the Dragon Slayer slumped against the bars. Before the guards pulled me away he looked at me with a dull, tired eye and I whispered against the cloth.

"It's okay, Natsu. It's okay." I don't know if he heard me but I felt his eye on my back as I was pulled up the stairs. A cloaked figure with the hood drawn up swept past me and my escort, heading towards the cage room. I was through the door to my cell when Natsu screamed.

"LUCY! DON'T TOUCH HER! PLEASE! LU—" He was cut off by a savage roar, monstrous and inhuman. It shook the air with its power and the volume had the guards clamping hands over their ears. My hands were inaccessible and as a result I felt deaf for a solid minute before my hearing gradually came back. Webs of cracks spread along the ceiling. A groan came from the stone and my tour guides rushed out moments before the ceiling caved in on me. It turned out that luck was on my side – I was cut off by two large chunks on either side and one on top of them, but no part of me got crushed. Dust rained on my eyes and swept into my mouth, sending me into fits of coughing. I needed my magic, so I found myself a sharp corner and sawed away at the cuffs. They were surprisingly fragile.

 **ERZA:**

Four groups were chosen to invade the Duke's stronghold, but by the time we reached the castle there was nothing left for us to invade. The massive building had caved in, the formerly impenetrable walls reduced to shapeless chucks of stone and a million bits of dust. A roar shook the ground, loud enough to make us cover our ears. An explosion of fire had Gray jumping in front to create an ice shield. It barely held long enough to protect us from the worst of the flames.  
"That'd be Natsu, eh?" He panted. I nodded grimly.

"Looks like he lost it." Gajeel smirked behind me. I turned around to face the teams.

"Listen up! Natsu is on a rampage. Most likely he doesn't remember us anymore, so don't waste your time. We go in, find Lucy and hopefully Natsu, and leave. Teams A and B, take the left half of the grounds. Teams C and D take the right half. Divide by our current position. Go!" We split, Levy and Bickslow on my heels as we raced for the destroyed building.

"Bickslow, what can you see?" I shouted.

The Rajinshu member pulled off his mask and eerie green eyes scanned the destruction. One soul below ground on our half. I can see Natsu too, but he looks intense." He shouted back. _So Natsu really did lose it, huh?_

"Levy, be careful. Stay with Bickslow." I commanded and requipped into my Flight Armor. The small mage nodded once without hesitation and I sped up, leaving the two behind. Coming up to the ruins I saw the problem straight away: a scaly and furious Natsu, a leering Duke, and the faceless mage from the attack on Fairy Tail. Requipping into my Flame Empress armor, I brought their attention to myself. A tuft of black hair behind the enemy informed me of Gray's presence.

 _"_ _Warren, tell Gray to freeze the faceless mage and the Duke."_ I spoke mentally. Warren quickly replied in the affirmative and I called out to the trio.

"Natsu! What are you doing?" The pink-haired nightmare focus two pitch-black eyes on me and his growl vibrated in the air. The faceless mage pulled out a small remote and hit a white key. Natsu froze.

The Duke laughed. "Erza Scarlet, the great Titania, have you come to see my new pet? Natsu, go play with her." He leered. The Dragon Slayer took off at the command and flew at me, fists blazing. I deflected his hit with my sword, but I underestimated the gain in raw power. My feet slid back across the stone. Laughter echoed from the ruins.

"You see, Titania, this is a battle you cannot hope to win. He is your comrade, after all. You wouldn't hurt him but I can assure you that he holds no such restraints." I swore. The Duke was right, in a sense. Natsu lost his mind to the curse and had no more human feelings to stop him, but I wouldn't hesitate to injure him if it meant he would stop. I wasn't about to lose my life in battle. Another attack, this time coming from the elbow. I dodged it and thrust the hilt of my sword into his stomach. Natsu flew back a few feet before flipping over and attacking again. Gray leaped out from behind the wall to engage the two men watching my battle.

"Ice Make: Lance!" Spears of ice flew at the two spectators, hitting the Duke squarely while the faceless creep vanished, only to pop up a few feet away. Gray kept up the attack and within moments was joined by Levy, Bickslow, Cana, and Freed. Gajeel and Wendy joined my battle with a mindless Dragon Slayer.

"Sky Dragon's Roar!"

"Iron Dragon's Roar!"

Two powerful columns of air hit the scaly boy. He merely staggered and bared his teeth in what looked like a smile. I darted in and slashed across his chest but the scales deflected my blow. Natsu was one dense idiot.

"Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!"

"Iron Dragon's Sword!"

The two friendly Dragon Slayers were barely holding their ground against Natsu. I changed for Black Wing Armor and landed several hits on Natsu, none making a dent. This was becoming a very bleak prospect.

"Rage Bringer." A cold voice hissed by my ear. My body spun around on instinct, the charged sword cutting my enemy in half. A black vortex spit out a red wave before fading away. Faceless was gone, but he'd done the job. I felt a small pull of rage in my mind but squashed it firmly under my resolve. Gray shut his eyes for a moment to collect himself and started an ice make. Cana sighed and chugged another bottle of booze. Freed followed Gray and took out his sword, his right eye already a deep purple. Wendy and Gajeel grabbed their faces, struggling with the powerful spell. Bickslow's dolls glowed and intense green. Tears poured from Levy's eyes and the small girl began to shake under the pressure.

"Ice Make: Geyser!"

"Shattering Light: Sky Drill!"

"Karma Demon: Iron God Sword!"

"Dark Ecriture: Pain!"

"Go, babies! Baryon Formation!"

"Booze!"

"Solid Script: Iron!"

My comrades put all of their power into the attack while I stood alert, waiting for any movement in the smoke. Sure enough, the explosion, although being of epic proportions, soon revealed a smoking monster with pink hair. His cold, ragged laugh ran around the crater. He tipped his head back and roared, the sound sending my ears into oblivion. For Gajeel and Wendy's sensitive hearing it must've been a thousand times worse. There was no doubt now: the creature was no longer Natsu.

 **NATSU:**

The attack was incredibly cute. Was that the best they could do? A black blur shot at me, her sword repeatedly bouncing off my scales. I grew tired of her and caught the glistening blade between my fingers. Flinging the sword to the side, its owner flying with it, I gathered my magic and breathed out Fire Dragon's Roar. I didn't have to cast the actually spell. I was a dragon, and dragons didn't need the tools of humans. Or should I say maggots.

They were all going to die here. Surely they must know that. The only maggot that bothered me was the one who could control this stupid collar, which refused to break, but now he was gone. I was free to destroy at my leasure.

"NATSU!" A strange voice pierced my sensitive ears, full of despair and yet strangely melodic. "Natsu, look at me." Not knowing why, I turned. Her large brown eyes captured mine, a spot of color in an otherwise white and black landscape. She walked up to me and her small hand touched my cheek. I recoiled at the contact but she refused to budge. "Natsu, look at me. Remember? I'm Lucy." Sounded familiar. Lucy… The rage squished any memories that dared to bubble up. "You like my spicy chicken. You almost made me laugh." A picture was forming in my head as the rage screeched and tried to rip it to shreds. I felt myself wince. "You saved me when the bad guy messed with my head, remember?" The picture cleared slightly. I made out blonde hair and pale, creamy skin with lines of red. "You tried to protect me from the bad guy." Brown eyes were added to the creamy face. I smelled blood. "Remember how I used to whisper, Natsu?" The ghost of a smile and a laugh hidden in her eyes. "Remember my promise?" She had understood. It was a nice feeling, to be understood. "I promised that I would never run away." She had promised and she kept that promise. Somewhere deep inside my humanity stirred, drawn to her voice. "I told you that I could see past the scales and horns." The little human crawled out, testing the area. "I still can, Natsu. Can you come out?" With a heavy jolt I slammed into the human, my vision blacking out. Suddenly I was alone, surrounded by black flames. They towered over me, fueled by an ancient rage. My magic felt replenished and my fists became encased in fire, the golden light struggling against the onslaught of anger. Her voice rang through my head, sweet and caring. Lucy's voice. "I miss you, Natsu. Come out, please."

Determination took hold of my mind. "Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!" My golden fire burned through the black and I was back in my body, the world spinning. Everything hurt. I felt exhausted but I needed to tell her something. Something important.

"Hey, Luce. I love you." I blacked out.


	9. Chapter 9

**LUCY:**

He came back to me. He was gone and he came back. We had met a little over three days ago, but the experiences we'd had were enough to bring him back. The black faded away from his eyes, leaving two glittering onyx irises. The scales started to draw back, starting from his hands and feet and vanishing above his heart. His horns crumbled to a fine black powder. The curse left behind the boy with pink hair and curved teeth who made me talk. It felt really weird, talking, but I could get used to it.

"Hey, Luce." Natsu grinned at me. His skin was slick with sweat and he panted like he'd just run a marathon. "I love you." His eyes rolled back and he fell forward. I caught him and gently lowered him to the ground.

"Natsu?" I whispered, falling back into my old habit. Shouts rang out like gunshots but I ignored them. Natsu's clothes were slightly steaming and his skin was boiling hot to the touch. Someone shoved me aside and an elderly lady took my place, her pink hair edged with pale yellow. Porlyusica. A curtain of scarlet covered my view.

"Lucy, come with me. Porlyusica will take care of him." Erza spoke reassuringly. I nodded and got up to follow her, giving the Dragon Slayer a glance over my shoulder. He looked pale, like mama did when she died.

"He's going to be okay, right?" I whispered. Erza glanced at me, her gaze sympathetic.

"Yes. Natsu's one tough bastard. He wouldn't give up without a fight." She murmured.

"Wouldn't?" I asked. She had used a past tense, like Natsu was already gone. Not getting my point, she nodded.

"Gajeel, pick him up. We need to get back to the guild." The healer's harsh voice barked out orders. In ten minutes we were gone, the ruins of the castle at our backs.

 **ERZA:**

Lucy was silent the entire journey home. She just stared at the wall of the carriage, her eyes unfocused. Gray kept prodding her to talk but she seemed to be deaf, completely ignoring him.

"Tch. She was talking to the insane flamebrain, but now it's like she forgot how." He grumbled. In truth I was very concerned for her. She had spoken with her true voice for the first time, but now she just looked lost.

We made it to the guild in record time. Gajeel hauled Natsu up to the infirmary and Lucy followed them like a ghost, staying just long enough to hear Porlyusica's diagnosis.

"The attacks, despite looking to be ineffective, were felt by his human body. I'm surprised he's still in one piece. The curse is gone, but it seems that the effort of dispelling it from his body took a large toll. He is currently in self-induced comatose state. In other words, his body forced him to shut down for repairs. I don't know when, or if, he will wake up." Porlyusica's voice was grim. Lucy merely nodded and left, silently sliding past people in the main hall. She came back the next day with a book and spent an hour in the infirmary. She came every day for two weeks, never saying a word. Master paid her for the infiltration mission she volunteered for, saying that she did a good job and deserved the reward. She thanked him in a barely audible whisper, and that was the only thing we heard from her. I stayed at the guild in case some crackhead decided to take advantage of Natsu's condition. Otherwise, life went back to normal: brawls were started, insults exchanged, jobs completed. The only thing missing was a stupid fistfight between Gray and Natsu.

 **LUCY:**

"Hey, Natsu." I slid into the chair next to his bed. His skin was too pale and the spiky strands of pink fell limply onto his pillow. His eyes were closed and his breathing was slow. He looked dead. "I didn't bring a book this time, sorry. You know, the guild's been really quiet lately. Sure, they started a couple fights but without you and Gray it seems like there's not enough manpower. Gajeel has only shown up once, to take Levy out on a job. I think he likes her. Jet and Droy nearly had a fit when she agreed to go with him. Gray just sulks most of the time and tried to avoid Juvia. Erza hasn't left the guild since you fell asleep. I think she's worried someone would want to get at you. I heard you have a lot of enemies." I sucked in a large breath. Talking to him was hard, not knowing if he would ever answer, but I was talking. Not whispering. "Happy's staying with Wendy and Charla. He's missing you a lot. Master had to go to the Magic Council for a hearing, but I think it went in his favor. Surprise, right?" I wracked my brain, searching for something to talk about. "Well, let see… what else happened? It's been two weeks. I finished storing my winter stuff and updated mama on everything that happened. I got a letter from papa, saying that he missed me. I don't want to go back though, back to being a lady. It's much more fun here, even though you're not with us. Oh! Levy gave me three new books. Maybe I can read them to you some time. I want to practice speaking, because it still feels weird." I put my head on his bed, folding my arms under my cheek. "Aquarius was so mad at me for ignoring her for three weeks straight. She's always complaining that I call her when she's on a date with Scorpio, so you'd think she'd be glad." A small tear leaked out onto my cheek. Why didn't he wake up? I closed my eyes, trying to stem the tears that threatened to fall. "Do you think I should go visit papa? He said he would hold a ball in honor of my return. I'm worried that he will try to force me to stay, become a lady and all that. I don't want to go alone."  
"Then I'll come with you." I squeezed my eyes tighter. I must've been imagining his reply, my brain making it up to give me what I wanted. Well, a fake conversation should be better than none.

"And do what? Punch him in the face? Eat his house bare?" My lips twitched as I imagined Natsu inhaling food, plate after plate disappearing into his mouth as my father's guests stared.

"Something like that." Unable to bear the tension in my chest I looked up. His onyx eyes were open, locked on my face. "Hey, Luce." He said, his voice soft.

My tears fell unrestrained as I leaped up and rushed to hug him, burying my face in his chest. He was so warm, so alive. I felt his hand on my back, holding me close.

"Thanks for staying with me. I missed you, Luce." He murmured. I laughed through my tears, hiccupping slightly.

"You idiot. Leaving me like that, who gave you permission? Do you have any idea how much I missed you?" I tried to sound mad but couldn't manage it. His fingers clenched the back of my shirt and relaxed.

"Why were you speaking? Out loud, I mean." He asked. His other hand began to stroke my hair in a loving gesture. Maybe he meant what he'd said. I knew I loved him, that's for sure, but he could've been kidding. People were good at lying.

"I don't know. I guess I figured you wouldn't hear me if I whispered." The tears slowed but I stayed where I was, no reason good enough to make me move.

"I don't know about that." I looked up at him, his tone catching me off guard. It was so serious. "I meant what I said, you know." He whispered.

"I know. I love you too." I whispered back. He grinned, his eyes alive with delight.

"You're such a wierdo." He teased. I tapped him on the nose.

"Says you! Making me fall in love with a stranger, jeez!" His grin stretched wider. I though his face was going to split.

"Come on, let's go and cheer up Gray. I heard what you said about him sulking." I snorted.

"Eh? You're crazy, you know that? You just woke up. From a two week coma. Gray would pound you into the floor." I couldn't believe it. He wanted to fight Gray after everything that happened. Was he insane?

"Naw, I could beat that perverted snowflake with my hand tied behind my back. Besides, I feel fine." Yep. Definitely insane.

"Aha, sure. You know Erza's here too, right? Or did you only hear what you wanted to?" He swore and I laughed. Full out, real laugh. Natsu stared at me, his mouth slightly open. "What?"  
"You laughed, Luce. I love it." I laughed again and he smiled. He pushed himself off the bed with a slight stumble and I caught him before he could topple over.

"With a hand tied behind your back, huh?" I rolled my eyes for emphasis. He grinned cheekily.

"'Course. Gray's a total wimp. Wait till you see his face when I get out of here!" He sounded like an excited child who had been promised ice cream. Or spicy chicken, I guess.

"Are you going to use me as a cane to do that?" I couldn't help but tease him. He huffed but got back on his own two feet and took a couple steps to regain his sense of balance. Before I could blink he was somersaulting across the infirmary beds and drooling fire.

I sighed and propped my hands on my hips. "C'mon, let's go and find Gray." He grinned and offered me his hand.

"You wouldn't want to miss my victory." He murmured as he led the way through the door and into the guild hall. My eyes went on a roll again while he cracked up at Gray's expression.

It wasn't what I used to dream about, but it was perfect.


	10. Lucy's Letter

_Mama,_

 _Natsu woke up! Remember the boy with the pink hair I told you about? He woke up and he said he loved me. I love him too. Thanks to him I started to talk normally again. I even laughed!_

 _I really love him, but he can be so stupid it drives me insane. You know what he did right after he woke up? He went to FIGHT Gray, a mage just as powerful! Okay, maybe not as powerful, but you get the gist. We came out of the infirmary and everyone was staring and he just laughed and challenged Gray. They called each other names for a good ten minutes and then started a fight. Elfman and Gajeel jumped in straight away. Cana threw an empty barrel and it hit Droy on the head. He and Jet joined real quick. Even Freed got caught up, and Romeo! Erza broke them up just by taking out her sword. She's really scary, mama, but I want to be as powerful as her. Otherwise Natsu would burn my apartment down. He visits often, and like a jerk goes through the window each time. I have barely any food left, thanks to him._

 _Happy was so, well, happy when Natsu woke up. He flew through Erza's cake to get to Natsu and she nearly took their heads off. Wendy was also really happy, especially now that Natsu stopped hiding from the guild. He took me out on a big job last week and we destroyed half of a town. He must've missed being a cheeky bomb on legs._

 _Gajeel and Levy are officially a couple! Gajeel's face was so red when Levy told us, it was really cute. I saw them kiss in the library yesterday. They fit together so well._

 _Papa invited me to come and visit, and I said yes as long as I could bring along a friend. By friend I mean Natsu. Papa didn't like it but he agreed, and I'm going in two weeks. Plenty of time for him to plan a party like he usually does. Natsu was all serious about protecting me, saying that he'd kill anyone who dared to touch me. He gets really protective sometimes. I hope papa will mind himself when he meets Natsu, because I don't think they are compatible. I'll tell you all about it when I get back._

 _I'm doing pretty good. The money I got for the infiltration mission is paying my rent for the next few months. I'm done sorting my closet and I managed to make it up to Aquarius._

 _I miss you, mama. I hope you're doing well, but I imagine it's always perfect in Heaven._

 _I'll write soon, I promise._

 _With love,_

 _Lucy_


	11. Note from Author

Hey guys! Thank you all so much for all the reviews I have received! Now, lets get down to business.

1) I'm working on a short story, "Papa's Ball". I don't know when it'll be out, but I'll try to get it done before February 2016. It will be an addition to the main story, building on the invitation that Lucy received from her father.

2) If you guys would like me to write certain moments from the story from different point of view, please comment and let me know. I'll try my very best to get them done quickly, and they will be added on to the main story.

3) Last but not least, I really enjoy hearing from you all. I'm looking for my next story line and I'm all ears for suggestions. I'll be closing down on one idea sometime in February, so if you want me to do a certain plot please comment or message!

Hope you all had great start in 2016 and thank you for reading Cursed!


	12. Papa's Ball Part 1

Yosh! Here's the plan. I'm going to split up Papa's Ball into four parts so you guys can read them sooner. Part one is down below, so make sure to enjoy.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have an idea for an interesting plot twist comment and I'll see if I can fit it in. Try to refrain from randomly killing off the main characters. Let's have some fun with this one, shall we?

~ Yomico ~

I********************************************************I

 **PAPA** **'S BALL**

"Oh? A ball?" Erza blinked at me. "Who's the host?"

I twirled a strand of hair around my finger. "My father. He invited me to visit and I agreed, so he wants to throw a formal party. Natsu's coming with me and I'm afraid he'll burn down the house." Speaking aloud to people still felt weird. Erza nodded slowly as if pondering my worries.

"You'll need someone to keep an eye on him, yes. I'd be delighted to come." She reached out and gave me a crushing hug, my head slamming into her armor.

"Thanks, Erza." I muttered as stars danced across my vision. She let go and looked at me with a serious light in her eyes.

"What should I wear?"

I***I

Escaping a freaked-out Erza turned out to be impossible. She dragged me through all of Magnolia's stores in search for the perfect dress. Finally settled on a black and gold ball gown, she let me go and I ran to my apartment. Glancing up, I noticed my open window and scrunched up curtains. Sigh. I ran up the steps and let myself in the proper way: through the door.

"Natsu, where are you?" I called, shutting the door behind me. His pink-haired head popped out from my kitchen.

"Yo! Where were you?" He grinned. I slipped past him and poured myself a glass of water.

"Dress shopping with Erza." He paled a bit at that. "She agreed to come with us to papa's ball."

With a groan he plopped into a chair. "Dammit! She won't let me burn the house down! Why'd you ask her?"

I snorted. "That's exactly why I asked her. I want to have a decent relationship with my father, so she'll come to prevent you from burning the house down." He made an exaggerated sigh. I smiled and ruffled his hair. "Go home, Natsu. We have to leave early tomorrow, since Erza's gone temporarily insane. I told her papa said we could come as early as three days in advance and she jumped at the offer. Remember to ask Wendy to cast Troia before we leave."

He slowly got up and dragged himself out the door. Shutting it after the depressed Dragon Slayer, I took a bath and went straight to bed. Something furry was under my blanket.

"Happy. Get. Out." I hissed at the blue exceed. He looked at me with extremely sleepy eyes.

"Where's Natsu?"

"He left already."

"EH!? He forgot about me!" Happy used his aera magic to zip out the window, shouting, "Natsu! Wait for me!" I sighed and shook my head, a smile playing on my lips. Those two would drive me insane one day, I just knew it, but I was finally seeing the true Natsu.

When he'd come to from his coma the whole guild had partied 'till they couldn't see straight. Mira and Cana kept assuring me it was all good, but considering Cana's the guild drunk and Mira had a sneaky grin on her face I wasn't all too sure about believing them. Happy had spilled the beans on my relationship with Natsu, so now we're officially boyfriend and girlfriend. It was a bit awkward for is at first since he was still getting over his curse and I was learning how to use my voice, but we made it work. A couple weeks down the road and we finally figured it all out.

I***I

"I think I'm gonna be sick…" Natsu hunched over in his seat, his face green and drool escaping from his mouth. I giggled and Gray let out a strangled sigh.

"We _know_ you're gonna be sick, flamebrain." He smirked. Natsu just groaned again. Erza turned to Gray, earning a suppressed gulp from the ice mage.

"Remind me why you're here, Gray." She spoke around a forkful of cake. Gray stole another glare at Natsu before replying.

"I'm not going with you guys. My client's in the town after your stop." He gazed out the window, his coat already missing. He'd picked out some bodyguarding job that would pay well, assuming he didn't destroy the town while he was at it.

"You know, after your job, why don't you join us?" I suggested to the ice-make mage. He nodded with a small grin while Natsu gave an exaggerated but all-too-real barf. The stench of throw-up drifted from the window.

The announcer's voice rang from the speakers. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived at the Heartfilia estate. Please take care when exiting the train. Have a good day." I led my friends out to the platform, Gray carrying Natsu and dumping him unceremoniously before disappearing in the shadows of the cabin.

"Natsu, we're here! Time to get up." Happy darted around the pink-haired boy's head, attracting a mass of annoyed and curious looks. While we waited for Natsu to recover from his ordeal, I took the time to make sure that no one from the mansion was watching us. It was something father would do, just to have some sort of leverage later. Spotting a maid with an all-too-familiar green and white dress, I warned the arguing team and we opted to walk to the house.

"I don't want to be out of it if something happens." Natsu put his foot down when Erza suggested taking a carriage.

"It's okay, Erza. It's only a couple hours if we walk." I did my best to calm her down. I could swear she was seconds from ripping Natsu's head off. She took several deep breaths that had Natsu freaking out, but calmly agreed to walk. I felt the spying eyes of the maid on my back and leaned in to give Natsu a quick kiss on the cheek. I didn't mean for it to last longer than a moment but he grabbed my hand and impatiently waited for Erza to gain some distance before scooping me up for a full-blown make out session. I was fairly certain someone drew a sharp gasp, their horrified expression lost to the shadows they were hiding in.

I***I

"Here we are!" I tried to sound cheerful as we cleared the last bend but the sight of the looming mansion put me out like a candle left out in the rain. Erza's hand slammed down on my shoulder in what I'm sure she thought was a reassuring gesture.

"Your father's house is beautiful, Lucy. Thank you for inviting us to his ball." She sounded very formal, quite unlike her usual mood-swinging self.

"Meh. It doesn't suit you, Luce." Natsu grumbled. I giggled at his cute pouty expression and ruffled his hair.

"Yeah…" I sighed, making sure to keep my voice low so only Natsu and Erza could hear me. Natsu shot me his full grin, sharp canines flashing, while Erza gave a quiet chuckle. The mansion, a glorious cage of peach walls and white pillars surrounded by pretty-perfect lawns and gardens. It was hard to go back, but some things needed to be let out into the open and the time was ripe.

We came up to the massive double doors and I gave myself a moment's pause before making three sharp knocks. The doors swung open without a sound and a maid greeted us with the usual bow and welcome. We followed her up the grand staircase and down a maze of marble-floored halls until she paused at two intricately carved doors, their frames nearly touching.

"Sir Dragneel, Lady Scarlet, these are your rooms. Sir Heartfilia requests that you dress the part while staying here, and there are servants waiting in your rooms to help you change into the appropriate attire. Clothing has been provided in advance." The maid performed another clean bow. Natsu was about to protest when Erza slapped him on the back of the head.

"Please relay my thanks to Sir Heartfilia." Erza thanked the maid and kicked Natsu into his room while gracefully stepping into her own.

"Lady Heartfilia, if I may escort you to your former room?" The maid graced me with a grand bow, a masterpiece far grander than what she'd given my friends. I merely nodded and follower her to a more familiar section of the mansion where my room used to be. Stepping into my old room was like going back in time.

The massive bed was still there, pink curtains and body-sized pillows and all. Large windows sent in rays of sunlight that lit up the huge white rug. Two small pink couches stared at each other from opposite sides of a flower-laden coffee table, each equipped with various pillows in all shades of pink and white. A fancy white desk gleamed from countless coats of polish, the shelves stocked with paper, pens, and various useless accessories. The desk chair still had the squishy pink cushion with a large gash, the same one I had made the day before I left. The doors to my extensive walk-in closet framed a full-length mirror. Not a speck of dusk in the entire monster of a bedroom. He though I would stay.

My hands balled up into tight fists, my anger mounting at his obvious actions. He wanted me to stay for reasons unknown even though I told him I would leave.

"Lady Heartfilia? May we enter?" A new voice rang out, muffled by the door. I spun around to open it for them but they immediately scolded me for doing such unlady-like things. "Sir Heartfilia requests your compliance with the customary attire, my Lady. Which dress would you like to wear today?"

We combed through the overkill of a closet until I found the simplest dress I could, which was still extremely complex. It was a pretty baby blue contraption with little frills of white lace bordering the elbow-length sleeves and framing my hips. The skirt fell past my ankles and ended in a border of white satin. The maid worked their magic to fasten the back and wrapped my hair into a perfect little bun with a baby blue ribbon, making sure that little strands were loose around my face. A delicate pearl necklace and a pair of heeled white shoes and I was done. A porcelain doll put up for display, just like a lady should be.

"You look lovely, Lady Heartfilia." One of the maids complimented with a slight giggle. I resisted an overwhelming urge to rolls my eyes and thanked them before ushering them out. Once the door was shut I took apart the bun and pulled off the necklace. A dress I could live with, but I was determined to show my father that I wouldn't stay.

The door slammed open to reveal a pink-haired boy in an informal suit, just a plain white shirt with a black coat and black pants. His scarf was wrapped around his neck and the top few buttons of his shirt had come undone. I was surprised to see that his gleaming black shoes were still dirt-free. His face was stuck between irritation and a pout.

"Hey, Luce! The bastards stole my clothes!" Natsu strolled in and plopped down on the bed. Happy flew in right after, closely accompanied by a strawberry-cake-consuming Erza. She had changed into a simple mint green gown and her hair was up in a complicated hairdo. Where she'd gotten the cake from was beyond me, but the dress really suited her.

"Sorry, Natsu. I'll make sure to get them back when we leave." I giggled and went over to him, my eyes meeting his onyx ones. He fell back into the pink blanket, his hair almost blending in, and scowled.

"But that's too long! This thing is itchy." He complained and tugged at the coat. Erza sighed after a blissful moment of cake.

"Sir Heartfilia asked that we dress appropriately while we're here, and your regular clothes don't fit the description. Deal with it, Natsu." She tucked a loose strand of scarlet behind her ear and went back to enjoying her cake. "I would like to get to know the mansion a little better, so I'm heading out. Keep an eye on him, Lucy."

"Ok. Just try to keep the swords away, okay?" I reminded her. We'd all agreed to be as non-reckless and destructive as possible.

She strolled out with a nod and shut the door behind her. Natsu immediately pushed off the bed and examined the whole room, him and Happy poking their noses where they didn't belong.

"Ooooh, what's this?"

"You damn cat—"

"Natsu! Lushy's gonna kill meeeeeeeeee!"

"Hey!"

"What's this?"

"Pwetty…"

"Natsu Dragneel, if you do not put that thing down this instant—you damn cat!"

"Luce, why is your face red? Are you sick?"

"Luuuuusssssshhhhhyyyyyy—"

"Oi, Happy! Look what I found!"

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!"

"Lushy's scary."

"Aye."

"I'm counting till five and then I'm calling Erza."

"We're sorry!"

"Aye, sir!"


	13. Papa's Ball Part 2

Welcome to Papa's Ball Part 2! Enjoy!

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 **PART 2**

I finally managed to pull Natsu out of my room after several rather embarrassing scenes with items about whose existence I'd completely forgotten. Happy had become infatuated with a rather large fish a maid had brought to my room and told us he'd rather stay and eat it rather than watch us "get all mushy". We walked through the hallways in a comfortable silence, neither really knowing where we were going but simply enjoying each other's company. At some point during our stroll we were coming up to another corner when I heard several deep voices, all discussing the same topic. Me.

"…she has returned."

"I'm wondering who was chosen as her betrothed. In full honesty, I wouldn't mind a piece of her."

"Jude would get a good deal from her marriage, no doubt."

"There are rumors of her already having chosen someone…"

"Not a chance. A high society lady would never go against her father…"

I heard Natsu suck in an enraged breath and I placed my hand on his shoulder. He closed his eyes and shuddered slightly, working hard to get his feelings under control.

"Natsu, give me your arm." I whispered and he stuck it out to the side, confused. I tried very hard to not giggle as I arranged our arms so that they were linked, making me 'on his arm' in high society terms. "Okay, now keep walking and don't get into a fight."

I led the way around the corner and the men froze as we came into view. Four pairs of eyes immediately jumped to our linked hands as we brushed past them before sliding over to Natsu and thoroughly examining him. They checked his hair, his outfit, his scarf, his face, his posture – it was downright ridiculous. Natsu stiffened as their eyes moved to me, darting up and down as they looked me over. He let out a low growl, barely audible, but I caught it and squeezed his elbow. We couldn't afford a fight here. When the next corner came I was ready to scream in joy and relief.

"Thanks." I dropped the arm link and grabbed his hand instead, a far more comfortable position. His hand tightened sharply before relaxing and he let out a long sigh.

"No wonder you ran away." He muttered. I nodded in reply and pulled us to a garden door, pushing it open to let the fresh air blow around our faces. The sun was edging towards the horizon, covering the gardens in a golden glow. Natsu took the lead, his pace speeding up until he was practically running. I kept stumbling over my dress and before I knew it Natsu had me in his arms, carrying me like a bride while still managing an easy run. I would bet my closet that not one of the high society men could do the same. I snuggled into his chest and his grip tightened as he slowed down before coming to a full stop. I lifted my face to find us at the edge of a large pond, the edges framed with carefully placed rocks and overgrown lilies. The sun's rays danced across the water, illuminating it with a gold sheen. Natsu set me down oh-so-carefully and wrapped his hands around my waist in a tight hug.

"I want to go back and find those bastards and rip out their throats and…" He trailed off. I felt a smile tug at my lips and I leaned back against him.

"Only four days, Natsu, and then we can go back home. Besides, it's only natural for my father to try something like this." I spoke softly, enjoying the moment.

"Like what?" Natsu's forehead came in contact with the back of my head.

"Like inviting a bunch of single rich-as-hell freaks to the ball in the hopes that being amongst them will magically turn me back into a lady." I threaded my fingers with Natsu's. "Or he'll just shove a handpicked suitor under my nose and expect me to stay, which is far more likely."

"Then I'll burn them all into little piles of ashes." Natsu played with my fingers, his voice a low growl. I giggled and he relaxed slightly, letting out a content sigh. "Then we'll go home and go on a really big mission and beat up a bunch of bad guys and destroy lotsa stuff."

"Yes go home, yes go on a mission, yes beat up bad guys but _no destroying stuff_. I need to pay my rent and if you demolish another village I'll be paying damage expenses instead." I twisted around to look at him and he grinned.

"If you move in with me then you won't have to pay rent and we can destroy stuff." Natsu planted a soft kiss on my forehead. He could be so gentle sometimes, like when he wasn't fighting Gray or being a general nuisance, and it still surprised me sometimes.

"I'll think about it, but you can't just destroy stuff. No one's going to hire you like that." I told him and he pouted. He looked absolutely adorable when he did that, making it very hard to resist giving him what he wanted. It was a wonder the world was still in one piece. He captured my lips in a lasting kiss and a comfortable heat spread through my body.

"We have to ask you to stop dirtying our lady." An aggressive voice followed by a chorus of sniggers broke our moment and we both turned to see a rather unimpressive scene. A dozen men, maybe more, all dressed to the point of choking in fancy clothes. Most had a decent amount of stomach bulge and carried the stench of liquid courage. All were eyeing me with unguarded desire, no doubt undressing me in their perverted heads. Cowardly bastards.

"What's it to you?" I asked them. A few shocked gasps rang out, unnervingly loud in the otherwise silent evening.

"You are forgetting your place, my lady." The headman smirked. "Undoubtedly the result of being in the company of such lowlife. Your father would be beyond grateful if we freed you from the contamination of this filth." He gestured at Natsu. I had a very expected urge to slap the hell out of this guy, but Natsu beat me to it.

"Why don't you ask her? If it's so important to you then let her decide." Natsu's voice was a snarl. The men sniggered, most of them clearly drunk.

"Her opinion doesn't matter." The headman took a swaying step towards Natsu and pointed a shaky finger. "And yours doesn't even exist." Natsu didn't bother responding, he just leaped at the crowd and covered his fists in flames along the way. I let Natsu vent his anger and merely watched him as he pounded the scumbags into the dirt. Once he finished with the last one I walked up to him and wrapped my hands around his neck, the dress protesting every inch of the way. He pulled me into a tight embrace and buried his nose in my hair before taking a deep breath.

"You good?" I asked him, my voice muffled by his chest.

"Yeah. Sorry about that." He barely passed a whisper.

"They got what they deserved. Nice follow-through on the third punch, by the way." I pulled back so I could look at him and a very wide grin split his face.

"I think the second one was better." He chuckled, completely forgetting about the perverts that littered the ground around us.

I smiled up at him. "They were all good." He rolled his eyes and swooped down for another kiss. When we finally broke apart my lungs were heaving for air. "C'mon, we have to go join the others for dinner."

"But Lucyyyyyyyy—"

"It's either that or facing Erza's wrath. Your choice." I carefully made my way around the bodies and back up the path to the mansion, a whining Natsu in tow.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Dinner was uneventful, to say the least. My father didn't ever bother to make an appearance. On our way to the dining room we met several groups of men, but none dared to provoke Natsu. Undoubtedly, someone had already spread the word of our little pond-side encounter. Erza was happily oblivious and made her way through several slices of cake, Happy munched on another fish and Natsu ate the table bare. Once his stomach was full he offered to walk me back to my room and refused to take no as an answer. I kicked him out after thanking him, of course, to take a relaxing bath and crawl under the covers without any pink-haired or blue-furred surprises.

I awoke because I was hot. Sure, the blanket was far too thick for the weather, but there was no chance it would heat me up this much. I could feel the sweat dripping down my back and my hair was plastered to my face. I suppressed a groan as I made an attempt at getting out and was stopped by a strong arm around my waist, pulling me back.

"Luceeeeee… five more minutes…" Natsu mumbled sleepily. I rolled my eyes and tried to pry his arm off without any success whatsoever. Instead, he slipped his other arm under my side and buried his face in the crook of my neck. Well, at least I knew why I was so hot.

It didn't look like my situation would change in the near future and to be perfectly honest, I kind of liked it when Natsu started his morning cuddling. He'd always end up in my bed, either when I came home in the evening or when I woke up in the morning, and each time I had to kick him out.

"Fine. Five more minutes." I said softly and dropped my head back on the pillow.

"Lushy, where's the fish?" Happy flew out of the bathroom, frantically searching for his fish. I rolled my eyes and made absolutely no attempt to respond. "Lushy?"

"I don't know, Happy." I was falling asleep again. Forcing my eyelids open I took in the sight of a damn blue cat puffing out his cheeks with a sneaky smile.

"You liiiiiiiike him." He snickered.

"Obviously." I shot back and the cat fell out of the air in shock.

"You're supposed to deny it!" He wailed. I smirked and he decided to attack my walls. I didn't really care about his scratch marks, considering how I wasn't going to stay. It would take my father a mere flick of his fingers to have the walls repaired.

A knock sounded from the door. "My Lady? May we come in?" It was the maids again.

"Give me ten minutes." I called in response.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yes. Leave and come back in ten minutes." I didn't want them to see Natsu and Happy in here. Who knows what my father would do with that information. The maids left, their chatter fading with each step. I pried Natsu's arm off and quickly slid out from under the blanket before he could pull me back in.

"Luceeeeeee—"

"Natsu, you have to get up. We can't give my father anything to use against us." I cut off his whiny protest. He mumbled something unintelligible and cracked open one eye to give me a pleading stare.

"But it hasn't been five minutes." His eye closed and he rolled over onto his back.

"Yes, it has. Go back to your room before the maids start looking for you." I pulled out a towel and went into the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I ignored the various soaps and fragrances that lined the shelves and pulled out a bottle I brought from home to use instead. The bath didn't take long, but when I came back Natsu and Happy were replaced by three overexcited maids. Once again we rummaged through the closet to find something simple and ended up picking out a pale purple dress with dark purple layers and borders. I refused to let them do my hair and makeup, rather sending them away and applying my usual. A purple ribbon did the job for a side ponytail and I left for the dining hall. Erza caught up to me halfway there, wearing a dark turquoise dress with her hair falling free.

"How was your night, Erza?" I asked her, aiming for small talk. She took the hint and answered seamlessly.

"It was fine. Yours?" A slice of cake made its way into her hands and I had to restrain from gawking.

"Fine, thank you. When do you think Gray will come?" I started with good manners and quickly dropped them.

"Popsicle? Hopefully never." Natsu snuck up behind us and threw a hand over my shoulder. He was wearing another simple suit, probably meant to make him look poor in the high society men's eyes.

"What was that, flamebrain?" Gray's voice hit us from behind and we spun around to find the ice mage being escorted by a maid. A tick appeared on Natsu's forehead and within seconds the two where butting heads.

"You wanna go, stripper?"

"Bring it on, pyro!"

"Ice freak!"

"Fire freak!"

"Idiot!"

"Dumbass!"

"Do I hear fighting?" Erza spoke around a bite of cake. The effect was instantaneous. Gray had his arm around Natsu, Natsu had his arm around Gray, and both were shaking like lost puppies.

"N-no, ma'am!" Gray whimpered.

"A-aye!" Natsu agreed. I giggled at their antics as the maid watched in horror.

"How was your job, Gray?" I saved the boys from Erza's criticizing stare and they both pledged their undying loyalty.

"Tch. It was easy, just had to take out a thief. Took me less than a day." He stuck his hands in his pockets and his shirt was already missing.

"Your clothes…?" I trailed off as we reached the dining hall doors and a pair of maids swung them open for us.

"Crap!" Gray lunged for his shirt, lying discarded by the wall, and pulled it one before joining us at the table.

"Welcome home, Lucy." My father was sitting at the end of the table, his eyes locked on me. I refused to curtsy and instead took a place beside Natsu rather than at the other end, earning a shocked look from my father and suppressed gasps from the maids.

"Good morning, father." I replied and scooted my chair in before reaching out to fill my plate. The breakfast passed in silence, Natsu inhaling dish after dish while my father watched in disgust and irritation. The moment he was done he let out a long burp and sighed in satisfaction.

"That was good, Luce." Natsu patted his stomach. I smirked and pushed away from the table, not bothering to excuse myself.

"How about I give you a tour of the grounds?" I asked my friends. Erza nodded thoughtfully while nibbling her tenth cake slice.

"Sounds good. You coming, Erza?" Gray stood and unconsciously began to pull of his shirt.

"Of course. I must fulfill my duties. Your shirt, Gray." Erza rose gracefully and threw the freshly discarded shirt at the ice mage. He caught it – barely – and slung it over his shoulder.

"Yosh! Let's go, Happy!" Natsu jumped from his seat and knocked over his chair in the process.

"Aye, sir!" With Happy's cheerful shout we left my father and his maids alone in the dining hall, our every movement a clear rebellion to his plans.


	14. Papa's Ball Part 3

And behold, Part 3!

For the purposes of the plot, Lucy's father isn't like in the manga/anime.

Enjoy!

 **PART 3**

"Remind me to never let Erza into the sword smithy _ever again_." I groaned as we walked back to the mansion.

"Aye, sir!" Happy flew above my head, cheerfully responding to my request before making loops. Damn cat.

The tour had taken up the entire day, mostly because once my friends had found something that interested them they refused to leave. Gray had gotten stuck at the pottery house where the craftsmen made the various sculptures and vases that litter the mansion's hallways. Happy, of course, didn't want to leave the fishing lake and Natsu had to be dragged out from the smelter's workshop. According to him, the flames tasted really good. Around the same time as Gray distracted Natsu by starting a fight, Erza caught a glimpse of an elderly man putting finishing touches on a sword and immediately swamped him with questions. How do he like his swords? What polish is best? What design did he like? It all ended with her challenging him to a sword fight and I had to bribe her with a full strawberry cake to save to poor man from destruction. I called a maid and asked her to tell the cooks to immediately start a massive cake when Erza cracked her knuckles and muttered something about already being acquainted with the cooks. I shuddered just thinking about what she did to them when they attempted to protect the cakes. Natsu and Gray kept their distance for some time after that little incident and ended up blowing up the lodging for a few ball guests. When I began scolding them for being destructive, Natsu grinned, kissed me, and said he was doing me a favor by chasing away the, and I quote, "slimy bastards". Then Gray told us to get a room right before he was pounded into the ground by an enraged Erza screaming bloody murder. It turned out that a servant had been bringing her the cake when some flying debris from the exploded guest rooms squished his cargo and effectively destroyed the cake. The boys barely escaped with their lives. A group of panicked servants came rushing with another cake and begged me to give it to the rampaging demoness since I was her 'acquaintance'. I handed it over to her as a peace offering that she graciously accepted and we finally, _finally_ , managed to leave the scene.

"Lucy, this cake is really good." Erza mumbled around her bite. I struggled to keep my eyes from rolling; undoubtedly the cooks went all-out once Erza went insane.

"Luce, what are we going to do tomorrow?" Natsu smashed his fist into Gray's face, sending the ice mage sprawling and effectively ending their fight, before placing his arm across my shoulders. Gray jumped up with a desire for revenge only to be stopped with a dark look from Erza.

"I don't know. Maybe we should just take a break for a day, get ready for the ball and everything." I dreaded the day I'd be paraded in front of high society again. Natsu didn't say anything, but I knew he felt how my shoulders tensed up – his hand was lying on top of them, after all – and his fingers began playing with my hair.

"Sounds good." Gray agreed with a slight smirk as his eyes caught the sight of Natsu's fingers. I shot him a cold, steely gaze promising torture if he dared make a comment and he immediately put his hands up in defeat.

"Yes. Does the mansion have a training ground, Lucy?" Erza jumped topics so quickly that I needed a moment to actually register what she'd said.

"Um, I think so… maybe? If you ask a maid she should be able to tell you." I didn't have an answer for her and felt bad for any maid that happened to be the victim of Erza's interrogation. We were rounding the last bend when Natsu suddenly scooped me up without breaking pace and carried me bridal-style.

"What was that for?" I asked him, very confused at his sudden action. He merely grinned with too-innocent-to-be-true innocence and Gray groaned from somewhere to my left.

"He's telling them to back off." The ice mage clarified for me and I didn't need to look to know who it was. Probably another group of men who decided to try and scare Natsu away, only to see him carry me as if he did it every day. A very bold statement, if anything. I felt like groaning and punching Natsu to my heart's content for his possessiveness, but I had absolutely nothing against him and everything against the other men. Besides, none of the others would have been able to carry me for more than a couple steps. Natsu was basically killing two birds with one stone: proving his strength and showing his affection.

We split up at Erza's room and Natsu carried me all the way to my door. At that point I told him to put me down and go get ready for dinner, since his outfit had been dragged through hell and back during his spats with Gray. He left with a pout and I immediately went for a hot bath. It took longer that I thought it would, so I wasted no time in asking for maids to help me get into the curse of a dress that I'd picked out. It was a pretty thing, a burgundy bodice with a pale pink skirt, and fell into my category of simple. Despite my attempts at hurrying, I was still late for dinner and earned a disapproving glance from my father. Natsu frowned slightly at his food before diving in with a shrug. The servants were taking away our plates when my father cleared his throat.

"I have an announcement to make." He paused, as if making sure that he had our complete attention. "Since my daughter is already here and the preparations have been finished, the ball has been rescheduled for tomorrow evening at five o'clock rather than the day after. I assume that you all have busy lives and I have no wish to keep you here longer than necessary." He left the room right after, not bothering to wait for our reactions. Gray just shrugged, Erza began muttering under her breath about 'late notice' and 'problem', Happy kept eating his fish and Natsu watched me carefully. I followed Gray's example and rose with a shrug, bidding them all good night before walking back to my room. I was closing my door when Natsu walked past, his hands rubbing his temples and his mouth set in a confused frown.

"Natsu? Are you okay?" I called, pulling the door open to clearly see his face. He paused at the sound of my voice and shot me a wide grin.

"Yeah, I'm good. Good night, Luce." He replied cheerfully and kept going. I stretched out under the covers and quickly fell asleep, a part of me hoping my father wasn't serious about moving the ball. There was no way he would move an event like this the day before; he'd be too worried about inconveniencing his guests. That meant that he'd lied about the date of the ball from the start, but why? To remind me that I was under his power? I'd be lying if I said it worked.

 **XXXXX**

"Lushy! Wake up!" Happy's frantic cries shook me from my sleep. I cracked my eyes open to the dead of the night and a panicking cat. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes as her stared me down with a frantic gaze.

"Happy? What's wrong?" I mumbled, inwardly cursing him for waking me up and ready to go back to sleep.

"It's Natsu!" That had me leaping out of bed.

"What's wrong?" I struggled to keep from shaking the damn cat. He swallowed and the tears fell.

"He's really hot and he's whimpering and he won't wake up no matter what I do!" Happy had to finish while chasing after me as I ran out of my room. My bare feet pounded against the marble floors and I ignored the worried cries of maids that I passed. I practically slammed the door to Natsu's room open to find him tossing on his bed, the stench of burning sheets hanging in the air like smoke. I ran over to him and felt his forehead, only to jerk my hand back as my fingertips burned. Sweat formed a glistening layer on his skin and I could see faint outlines of scales under his eyes.

"Happy, go get Gray and Erza." I snapped at the cat. He darted out immediately and seconds later Erza appeared in her Heart Cruz pajamas.

"What's wrong, Lucy?" She asked and took a moment to drink in Natsu and the smell. I reached out and grabbed Natsu's hand, ignoring the burn as I tried to give him something to ground himself with.

"I don't know. Happy came into my room wailing that something was wrong and when I came in he was like this." Natsu let out a quiet whimper and his hand squeezed mine to the point of death. I clenched my teeth and bore it, not letting Erza see that his death grip hurt. Gray came rushing in with a chunk of ice already in his hands and he tossed it to me. I caught it with my free hand and placed in on Natsu's forehead. To our shock, the ice immediately began to sizzle and melt into a pool of cold water. Gray swore and made a new one while I watched Natsu. When the first ice block was completely gone I applied the second one and Natsu's hand cooled down slightly.

"Princess, here is the antidote." Virgo's sudden appearance had me jump in surprise. She held out a vial with a dark blue liquid. I took it slowly and asked Erza to hold Natsu's chin up while I poured the stuff down his throat. He responded almost immediately, settling down with a low sigh and relaxing his death grip on my hand. A million thoughts were running through my head, none pleasant and most not practical.

"Antidote to what?" I asked the spirit. My thumb began rubbing circles on the back of Natsu's hand.

"He had been poisoned with 'febra', known for the intense fever the victim receives. The poison paralyzes the body's immune system, rendering any self-defense systems useless. It takes little more than a teaspoon to fatally poison someone. As a Dragon Slayer, he normally burns through poisons in his system but the febra doesn't allow his body to remove the poison. With the antidote he should be fine in a few hours." Virgo made a stiff bow. "Punishment time, Princess?"

"No! Thank you for the antidote, Virgo." I would never be able to understand her desire for punishment.

"What are the side effects of the poison?" Erza asked thoughtfully.

"Very high fever and memory induction. I will be going now, Princess." Virgo made another bow and disappeared. We all looked at Natsu in horror.

"Whatever he's seeing, it can't be good." Gray murmured. I remembered Confusion Bringer all too clearly, the panic and pain it caused.

"You guys should go to bed. Tomorrow's going to be a long day. I can stay with him to calm him down if he wakes up." I told them, hoping that at least one of them would be able to see where I was going with my thinking.

Erza nodded. "If he wakes up it'd be best for you to be here. If you need anything don't hesitate to call me." She got up and left, dragging Gray with her. I locked the door behind them, jamming the lock to prevent any snooping maids from entering. If Gray or Erza came running they would simply break the door down, so a lock wasn't an obstacle for them. I settled into a chair with a random book and was halfway through when he snapped awake and shot out of the bed, stumbling slightly. His eyes darted around the room in sharp, frantic movements and his breaths were coming out in short gasps.

"Shh, Natsu, calm down. It's okay." I stood up slowly, setting the book onto the cushion while keeping my eyes on him. "It's okay."

He looked at me without any focus, only hearing the sound of my voice but not recognizing it. I walked up to him and slipped my hands into his. He froze for a few seconds at the contact before squeezing my fingers slightly, as if testing to make sure they were real. The things he must've seen…

"Luce?" He spoke softly, uncertainly.

"Yes. It's me, Lucy. We're in your room in my father's mansion. He invited us to a ball. Erza and Gray are here too, but they're in the room next door. You're safe, I'm safe, we're all safe." I went through the list slowly, keeping my voice steady. His eyes slowly took on focus and he locked his gaze on mine. Emotion flickered like little fish in his eyes, going from disbelief to confusion to fear. My own worry was growing by the minute, but I took great care to hide it from him. He needed stability, not more confusion.

He moved without warning and engulfed me in a tight hug. Burying his nose in my hair, he took a long breath, his fingers clenching the fabric of my pajamas. I wrapped my hands around his neck and gave him time to assure himself that I was there.

"Please don't leave." He whispered. I blinked at how shaky his voice was.

"I won't, I promise." I told him gently. He relaxed slightly with a long sigh and I felt his fingers play with the back of my shirt.

"Luce?"

"Hmm?" I leaned my head against his shoulder. He took a deep breath before continuing.

"I-I saw you back in that place… when t-they were… and you…" He shuddered at the memory and tightened the hug. I felt my heart crumble for him, the pain and fear he must've experienced being back in the cell.

"Shh, it's okay. It's okay. I know, you don't have to tell me. They can't do anything anymore. Everything's okay." I gently raked my fingers through his spiky hair. "C'mon, we have to get some sleep. I won't leave, I promise."

I led him to the bed and climbed in with him, letting him place an arm around my waist and pull me close without complaint. His face was buried in my neck and his warm breath tickled my skin. I fell asleep to the rhythmic beating of his heart against my back and dark thoughts buzzing around in my mind.

Virgo had said it took a teaspoon to be fatal. A teaspoon. Sprinkled over his food. Natsu frowning at his plate and rubbing his temples afterwards. Had he been poisoned during dinner? If so, who and why? The men who'd come for the ball? The maids? A stranger? _My father_?


	15. Papas Ball Part 4

**IT'S THE GRAND FINALE! ENJOY!**

I woke up to find that sometime during the night I had rolled over, and my face had ended up buried in Natus's neck. I was slowly suffocating from the heat and lack of fresh air while Natsu's hug was nearing a death grip. I adjusted my position to ensure my survival in the near future and continued to peacefully ignore the servants knocking on the door, trying to figure out why it wouldn't open.

"Sir?" A very high-pitched female voice called, muffled by the door. Natsu nuzzled my hair and softly murmured a long string of slurry curse words. I flipped around, desperate for cooler air, and he made sure to pull me in even more. I felt like a teddy bear.

The door was slammed open to reveal a very proper-looking Erza with a loaded breakfast tray and a smirking Gray. Erza strolled over to a desk and elegantly set her cargo down while Gray slammed the door closed and covered the cracks with a sheet of ice. His smirk widened when he saw me with Natsu and I got the feeling he was suppressing a snort.

"How is he?" Erza began to unload the tray, easily lifting the contents and placing them on the table. She had managed to stack several servings of eggs, ham, and toast into a massive pyramid of food. Natsu's nose twitched against the back of my head as he, no doubt, picked up the smell of his breakfast.

"Just wonderful. Natsu, go eat." I pried his arm off and slipped out from the bed. He murmured something unintelligible and cracked open an eye. "Otherwise Gray is going to eat it for you."

He immediately sat up, found Gray and tackled him with a solid leap from the bed.

"Oi! Fla—" Gray's surprised shout was cut off as Natsu pummeled him. While Erza's attention was focused on three slices of cake, the two rolled around the room in a violent snowball. I calmly stretched and picked out a plate from the pyramid before settling down in a chair to eat while lazily dodging flying limbs when the snowball came too close.

"Natsu! Food!" I shouted. Happy landed on my head, chewing a fish and effectively dropping squishy bits onto my hair. I swatted at him and his fish left a cold trail of slime of my hand.

"Aye, sir!" Natsu landed a strong punch on Gray's jaw and left the ice mage sprawling as he cheerfully walked over and began inhaling the food, plate after plate disappearing into his mouth. Happy left my hair alone in favor of Natsu's and I escaped into the bathroom, taking a refreshing bath before slipping into the same dress I'd worn for the night. Before opening the door, I mentally prepared myself for the terror of another brawl and emerged to view the wreckage. My concern was appreciated but not needed and most of the room had managed to survive in one piece. Natsu had changed into a decent outfit and Gray lost his clothes completely, sauntering around the room in his naked glory. I threw the book I had been reading and it hit the back of his head, sending him face-first onto the floor. Natsu cracked up and Erza yelled at Gray to find some clothes. He broke the door down to do so and I slipped out after him, running to my rooms to find a panicking set of maids frantically calling out my name.

"Lady Heartfilia! Where have you been?" One of them wailed as I made my presence known. I glanced at the clock with a grimace. It was well past noon, and my father would be pissed. Without waiting for my response, the trio of women attacked my hair and face, single-mindedly preparing me for the ball.

 **XXXXX**

Three hours passed in a blur, leaving me tired and irritated. First, my father had yelled at me for missing breakfast and lunch. Then Erza stormed into my rooms, dragging a beaten up duo by the ears and screaming murder. When she finally calmed down enough to tell me what happened, it turned out that the boys had destroyed her ball gown during a spat. I stuffed two cake slices into her hands and told the maids to give Erza a dress she liked. The great Titania left my room in a happy daze, escorted by five nervous wrecks of maids. Natsu and Gray both blessed me repeatedly until I Lucy Kicked them both out into the hallway and they were swarmed by a group of servants. Only when the boys were dragged away for preparations did I finally suck in a deep breath and collapse onto the bed. Before I knew it, my maid trio was back and more determined than ever. They forced me into an outrageous hot pink contraption that my father had chosen and created a masterpiece from my hair. My patience evaporated for the second time that day and I ordered them to leave and summon Erza, who came in with a hunter green and silver gown draped over one arm. She helped me take the hot pink monstrosity off and we chose a new dress, this one with a burgundy top and a cream-colored skirt with a golden border. The sleeves went down to my wrists and ended in a loopy gold border. Erza tightened my corset and I did hers. For our hair, we both decided to leave it down, except for my trademark side ponytail, and we only applied basic makeup. There was no need to be the ladies we weren't.

"You look lovely, Erza." I complimented her as we strolled out of my room. The dark green dress had numerous sharp silver designs that, in my opinion, perfectly captured her preference of swords.

"You too." She said with a smile. "Where are Natsu and Gray? I was expecting them to walk with us."

"My father demanded that they enter with the rest of the guests." I reassured her quickly, hoping that they would be spared from facing her wrath later. A relieved sigh escaped when she nodded in understanding. We reached the ballroom doors and a maid obstructed our way to issue her last instructions.

"Lady Scarlet, you will enter first and be introduced. Please join the guests after your name is announced. Lady Heartfilia, you are to follow one Lady Scarlet reached the ball floor. I will tell you when." She said quietly, bowing in a grand curtsy. We both nodded and Erza shot me a bright smile before striding through the doors like she owned the place.

"Introducing the great Titania, Lady Scarlet of Fairy Tail!" A deep male voice boomed and Erza dipped her head before slipping out of my sight as she took to the staircase in her usual elegance and poise. Polite applause accompanied her descent, and then any doubt I had of my father's intentions began to slip. The room was probably choke-full of single men all looking for a chance to place their bid on me. The maid gave her signal and I strode through the door, squashing any fear or discomfort I had. I would show all of them that I was no weak lady, and, besides, I was long since taken.

I walked up to the railing and let my gaze sweep commandingly over the room. A smile touched my lips when my eyes landed on Natsu, and the pink-headed pyro shot me his mile-wide grin in return. A few of his neighbors shot annoyed glares at him as they noticed him smile at me, and when they saw me smile in return their glares became a strange combination of angry and disbelieving. Natsu either didn't notice or didn't care; I was placing my bets on the latter.

"Introducing Lady Heartfilia, daughter and heir of the Heartfilia Konzern!" The announcer boomed. How convenient, leaving out my connections with Fairy Tail and laying emphasis on my heritage. The applause was more interested this time. I could feel the multitude of hungry, perverted stares that were all glued to my body, no doubt scanning over every feature they could. The stairs ended with a smiling dragon slayer, him arm extended for me to take.

"Such a gentleman." I whispered, so quiet that only Natsu would be able to hear, and linked my arm with his. His smile only widened and the light in his eyes took on a playful touch. The sea of men all watched with open malice and jealousy as the Lady Heartfilia _willingly_ accepted the arm of a mere peasant. Somewhere to the side an orchestra began to play a slow waltz and Natsu led me to the center of the room before placing his warm hand on my waist and leading the way into the dance. I had no idea he knew how to dance a waltz, and since when did he have manners?

"Mira taught me." He explained with an innocent shrug, noticing my surprise. I smiled at him and mentally thanked the barmaid for making my job that much easier. "Don't worry, I won't keep this up for long." He added with a knowing smirk. I giggled softly, earning several shocked stares from nearby spectators.

"I would never expect you to." I replied teasingly and he shot me a cheeky grin. The waltz music merged into a different tune but kept the pace and Natsu seamlessly transitioned, ignoring the typical custom of switching partners. I made no attempt to get away from him and we stayed a dancing couple until we both decided that we'd had enough and slipped away to get some food. Standing next to Natsu and sipping a light cocktail from an impossibly thin glass, I let my eyes roam the dancing crowd. They nearly popped out of their sockets when I saw Gray's dancing partner. I blinked a few times to make sure I wasn't hallucinating and turned to Natsu, who was busy demolishing any and all food he could get his hands on.

"Hey, Natsu?" I called, grabbing his attention instantly. He swallowed a large bite of meat and wiped his mouth.

"Yeah?"

"Is that… Juvia?" I asked incredulously, pulling him over and quickly pointing at Gray when he looked at me strangely. The moment his eyes landed on the blue-haired water mage he cracked up. I had to admit, the sight was pretty hilarious. Juvia looked absolutely stunning in a deep blue gown with hanging sleeves, but she kept alternating between drooling over her beloved Gray and glaring daggers at any passing women who dared to so much as glance in Gray's direction. I completely understood why each victim shuddered in fright and scurried away – I would've too. Anything to get away before she started with her Love Rival paranoia. Gray, on the contrary, looked incredibly uncomfortable and freaked out and made absolutely no effort to get away. I felt a smirk curl my lips. Those two were a definite item, even if one side refused to admit it.

As the ball progressed, only Erza kept up with tradition and changed partners for every song. Juvia skinned any woman stupid enough to come to close with a single-minded malice and I firmly turned down any man who came to ask for a dance. By the time I declined my thirty-something offer, Natsu had had enough and asked me himself, a request I happily accepted. He led me back out into the center and we joined the swirl of color in an elegant and effortless waltz. We passed Juvia and Gray more than once, and each time we were greeted with a muttered "Love Rival" and a whimpered "Help me". The music ended and we slowed to a stop, both smiling and eyes locked on the other. That's when the real party started.

"My Lady, if I may say that I find you absolutely stunning, then I would like to follow up with an irresistible offer." I reluctantly looked away from my dragon slayer to find the arrogant, self-conceited prick better known as 'the son of the Jullenel family', or Duke Swarre, striding forwards and bringing my hand up from a wet and sloppy kiss. Honestly, even Happy could do better with his mouth stuffed with fish. Where was the damn cat anyway?

Swarre proceeded to lower down onto one knee and pull out a small velvet box with the most extravagant flourishes I'd ever seen. The dreaded question left his lips with a practiced sliminess and the lid slid open to reveal the biggest and ugliest ring in the world. This man spent his fortune on the wrong things, that's for sure.

"Marry me, Lady Lucy Heartfilia, and I will shower you with riches. You will be the wealthiest woman in the world."

"No." My refusal flew out of my mouth without a second thought. Swarre's eyes narrowed in fury and the crowd of guests gasped in shock. Gray smirked and Erza nodded slowly, her mouth full with cake. The glittering eyes spoke of harsh punishment for causing such a scene, not showers of riches.

"I will offer one last time, my Lady. Mar—"

"What if she's already taken?" Natsu asked sharply, his voice right behind me. I turned my head to see him frowning slightly, hands in his pockets and a deadly fire raging in his eyes. I hadn't been the only one to read into Swarre's expression. Noticing my glance, Natsu gave me a warm smile and I took a small step back, leaning against his stoic frame. One of his hands slipped down and his fingers intertwined with mine, squeezing lightly. I returned the gesture and rubbed my thumb in circles across his palm, hoping to slightly calm him down. Swarre's overconfident demeanor cracked at the unexpected obstacle.

"Taken? She was promised to _me_ , you peasant. She can't be taken." Swarre's voice was edging on dangerous. The surrounding audience murmured in agreement and I felt a wave on disgust sweep through me.

"But I am." I snapped. Natsu's free arm slipped around my waist and I leaned back into his embrace. Swarre looked ready to explode and my father was nowhere to be seen.

"I see no ring on her finger, no mark of your claim. You would never be able to give her what a Lady of her class deserves." Swarre hissed. More muttered agreements from the crowd. I felt Natsu give a carefree shrug.

"Luce?"

"Hm?" I looked up at him.

"Will you marry me?" He said it as if it was the most natural thing in the world. I loved it.

I smiled softly. "Of course."

He grinned and our lips met in a passionate kiss. Somewhere to my left Gray began to gag and Juvia began to coddle him. Reluctantly, we broke apart. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Erza applauding our little moment, and when someone glared at her she absentmindedly pulled out a sword from her magic airspace. All eyes found something else to glare at.

"See?" Natsu swept me off me feet, catching me by surprise, and gave Swarre an innocent grin. "She's taken!"

"You little brat…" Swarre's fists clenched and he threw the little box to the side. Natsu laughed and Erza cut a path through the guests by simply prowling around in her Heaven's Wheel armor. Happy finally showed up with a fish in his mouth, breaking a window in the process. Juvia understood that we were leaving and eagerly pulled Gray towards an exit door, muttering something about Love Rivals and her precious Gray. With Erza as a literal bodyguard, Natsu strode towards the door, only stopping when my father called my name in outrage. Natsu spun around so I could see the furious man and gently set me on the ground.

"Sorry, papa, but I'm already with Natsu. Thanks for inviting us to your ball!" I gave a cheery wave and ran out after Juvia and Gray, pulling Natsu along with me. Erza exited last, slamming the door shut behind her and pulling out a large suitcase from behind the bushes.

"I got our stuff!" She called, walking over and carrying the massive box with ease. Natsu cheered and we set off, all happy to finally be freed from the mansion.

"So, when do you want to get married, Lucy?" Natsu asked, a smirk wide on his face.

"I think that first we need to admit to the guild that we're a couple." I giggled, tapping him on the nose. He grinned easily, his eyes trained solely on me and full of so much love and adoration that I wouldn't have expected from my little dragon.

"Yeah, or Mira's gonna have our heads." He planted a soft kiss on my forehead.

"Definitely. But then…"

"Don't get too excited. Mira's going to go insane and demand the wedding of her dreams, you can count on it."

"But Luceeeee…" He whined and threw in a pout for good measure. I rolled my eyes in response.

"Relax, Natsu. I'm not going anywhere and neither are you. Let her indulge her fantasies."

"She's going to kill us!"

"Oh yeah…" It was my turn to worry. Just then I heard a low boom and the heat from the explosion swept across my back. Spinning around revealed a chunk of the mansion going up in flames. "NATSU!"

"It wasn't me!" Natsu squeaked when I leveled a deadly glare at him. "It was Erza!"

"Erza?!" I whipped around to face the supposedly sane mage, who only shrugged.

"They didn't give me cake." She said simply, sending Gray into a fit of laughter. I groaned and rubbed my temples. She did the exact thing I brought her along to prevent…

 **THE END**


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